Gemstones And: Origins

Gemstones and
Their Origins
Gemstones and
Their Origins
Peter C. Keller, Ph.D.
Associate Director
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
Featuring Photographs by Harold and Erica Van Pelt

Foreword by Dr. Edward Giibelin
~ VAN NOSTRAND REINHOLD

~ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ New York
Copyright © 1990 by Van Nostrand Reinhold
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1990
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 89-16438

ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-6676-8
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Keller, Peter C., 1947-

Gemstones and their origins / Peter C. Keller; featuring photographs by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
p. cm.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-6676-8 e-ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-6674-4

DO I: 10.1 007/978-1-4684-6674-4
1. Precious stones. I. Title.

QE392.K39 1989
553.8-dc20 89-16438
CIP
To Elizabeth and Bret, with love
CONTENTS
Foreword ix
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xiii
About the Illustrations xv
PART I Gemstones Deposited by Water on the Earth's Surface 1
1. Gemstones Concentrated by Surface Waters: 5

The Gem Gravels of Sri Lanka
2. Gemstones Formed from Surface Water: 19
The Opals of Australia
PART II Gemstones of Igneous-Hydrothermal Origin 35
3. Hydrothermal Gem Deposits: 39

The Emerald Deposits of Colombia
4. Gemstones Formed in Pegmatites: 57
Gem Pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil
5. Gemstones Formed Directly from Molten Rock: 71
The Ruby Deposits of Chanthaburi-Trat, Thailand
PART III Gemstones Formed by Very High Temperatures and Pressures 83
6. Gemstones Formed by Low-Pressure Regional Metamorphism: 87

The Ruby Deposits of Mogok, Burma
7. Gemstones Formed by High-Pressure Regional Metamorphism: 101
The Jadeite Deposits of Tawmaw, Burma
viii Contents
PART IV Gemstones Formed at Great Depths 115
8. Mantle Thrust Sheet Gem Deposits: 119

The Zabargad Island, Egypt, Peridot Deposits
9. Diamond Pipes: 129
The Diamond Deposits of Argvle, Western Australia
Index 141
FOREWORD
Each gem deposit-whether of primary origin in the parent rocks; or secondary

as alluvial placers in valley floors, river gravels, or the sand of oceanic shelves-
presents an eloquent chronicle of the Earth's life story. It reveals to the expert
the prodigious processes which formed the present crust of our planet, of which
this volume discloses a small but exciting detail.
The materials of the Earth's crust are the rocks. In this book, the author
expounds on how they were formed, why they altered, why they became the
cradles of precious gemstones, how they are categorized, and how they are now
exploited by man.
What initiates the growth of gemstones? How do they crystallize? Why do
gemstones of the same species, originating from different sources, vary? What
causes the occurrence of varieties? Why do diamonds, unlike other precious
stones, occur not near the Earth's surface in its crust, but deep down beneath it
in the upper mantle? These are only a few of the entrancing subjects discussed
in this enlightening volume. The reader learns that the Earth is surprisingly alive
and altering constantly-sometimes through slow and equable changes and at
times by violent and tremendous cataclysms, events from which gemstones
issue.
Dr. Peter Keller is certainly to be congratulated on compiling a book about
gemstones and their origins. This is a first work of its kind and will be greatly
welcomed by all lovers of gemstones. German-speaking gemologists have for
decades been privileged by being able to gain detailed knowledge from a com-
prehensive book' specializing in the detailed description of all varieties of gem
deposits, mining and recovery methods, as well as the production of gemstones
as far as was known 50 years ago. Yet no book of similar importance was available
to the gemological student of the English tongue. In fact, information about the
geology of gemstone deposits and the origin of gemstones has in general and
until recently been unpardonably neglected in gemological literature and
courses. Students of gemology were obliged to learn about the cardinal virtues
distinguishing gems from ordinary minerals, and had to memorize enormous
ix
X Foreword
quantities of data, yet gained hardly any idea of the geology of the deposits or
the geological/petrographical cause of the formation and growth conditions of
gemstones.
* O. Stutzer und W. F. Eppler, DIE LAGERSTAEITEN DER EDEL- UND SCHMUCKSTEINE, Verlag Gebr.
Bomtraeger, Berlin, 1935.
Although less universal than the German volume, Dr. Keller's excellent book
grants its readers the advantage of a more concise selection and up-to-date
description of the geology, mining operations, production, and economy of the
most important gem deposits-in some cases referring to historically renowned
gems. This volume does justice to the eminent significance of geology in connec-
tion with modem gemology. It is now possible for gemologists with a keen
interest in the origin of gemstones to find the answers to questions that may
have tantalized them before.
On the basis of a modem geological classification, the structure of deposits
and their gemstones is excellently defined in this book, offering a clear and easily
comprehensible sUIvey of their origin. The list of contents provides the reader
with a clear concept of the layout of the book, emphasizing the most important
geological events leading to the formation of the different types of deposits which
engendered the particularly favorable conditions for gemstone crystallization.
Thus the reader is informed how gemstones are the products of various com-
pletely different happenings in and beneath the Earth's crust.
Knowledge of the geology of gem deposits has recently become more vital
for a complete understanding of gemstones and their distinction from synthetics
than knowledge of many of their other properties so highly assessed heretofore.
The relatively confined realm of gemstones encompasses a domain in which all
geological formations may be encountered. Consequently, the study of the origin
of gemstones is simultaneously a comprehensive introduction to geology. In
addition, the investigation of inclusions-fluid as well as solid-has contributed
remarkably towards a better and sometimes even a decisive understanding of
the origin and growth stages of gemstones in certain geological environments.
This volume offers fascinating reading for the well-informed gemologist, at
the same time rendering the beginner more familiar with the essential secrets of
the gemstones' origins. Quite often, one gains the impression that one is actually
present in a described deposit; observing how the gem crystals grow in their
birth chambers, or watching the miners at their arduous yet exciting work.
The text certainly inspires the reader not only to learn all about the origin of
gemstones but also to obseIve, to prospect, to conclude, and especially to maIVe!.
One learns that the study of gem deposits and their formation is a fascinating
science. In addition to the highly elucidating text, the volume is superbly illus-
trated; imparting to the reader a vivid impression of the appearance of many
gem minerals and their modes of exploitation, and transporting one into the
fabulous world of gemstones. Dr. Keller's book is truly indispensible to any
student of gemology, graduate gemologist, jeweler and jewelry sales staff, and is
earnestly recommended to mineralogists, collectors, and especially to all lovers
of gemstones.
Dr. Edward Giibelin
Meggen, Switzerland
PREFACE
A few years ago, I was approached by a gentleman who surprised me by stating

that gemstones did not belong in a natural history museum. He went on to say
that gemstones were minerals that had been worked by an artisan, and as such,
told us nothing of our earth's history. They would be much more appropriate in
an art museum, or if the gems had historical importance, they could be placed
in a history museum, but under no circumstance was a faceted gemstone appro-
priate to natural history. This argument initially startled me since next to dino-
saurs, gemstones are among the most popular objects sought out by visitors to
many of the world's natural history museums. But after some thought, I realized
that the challenger was to a large extent correct. In most natural history mu-
seums gemstones are displayed as beautiful objects, much as they would be in
a jewelry store, with little or no information about their relevance to earth his-
tory. Furthermore, literature on the subject is widely dispersed, and often very
difficult to find. The response to the above challenge was a gallery in the Natural
History Museum of Los Angeles County, entitled "Gemstones and Their Origins,"
which opened in 1985, thanks to the generosity of Alex Deutsch.
The purpose of this book is to expand on the idea initially proposed in the
museum exhibit and to include data that I have collected as a result of my
interest in gem occurrences. Much of this information was collected on frequent
trips to gem deposits, and published in various journals, especially Gems &
Gemology. The book is divided into four parts based on geologic processes taking
place at increasingly greater depth below the earth's surface. Each geologic
process is examined, in detail, along with an example of an important gem
deposit where this process has been observed. In each chapter, other deposits
of a similar nature will also be discussed briefly, although important references
from the literature will be included for any reader interested in more informa-
tion.
Part I of the book examines those geologic processes responsible for the
development of gemstones deposited by water on the earth's surface. These are
considered sedimentary deposits. This first part is subdivided into two chapters.
xi
xii Preface
The first chapter examines deposits of gemstones in which the previously

formed gemstones are reconcentrated into important deposits by surlace waters.
The classic gem gravels of Sri Lanka are used as an example of one of these
secondary or alluvial deposits. The second chapter discusses the chemically
precipitated gemstones created through the agency of surlace waters, focusing
on the opal deposits of Australia.
Part II of this book is devoted to those gem deposits formed by molten rock
and related hydrothermal fluids. It is subdivided into three chapters: hydroth-
ermal deposits, with the emeralds of Colombia as an example; the pegmatites of
Minas Gerais, Brazil; and those gemstones formed in a magma at depth and
brought to the earth's surlace as a volcano or fissure eruption, which describes
the rubies of Chanthaburi-Trat, Thailand.
As we go deeper into the earth's crust, we encounter metamorphic deposits
which can be divided quite broadly into low-pressure deposits and high-pres-
sure deposits. In Part III, we examine these deposits. The chapter discussing
gemstones formed by low-pressure regional metamorphism examines the fa-
mous ruby deposits of Mogok, Burma. This is an admittedly controversial chap-
ter, since many textbooks state that Mogok is of "contact" metamorphic origin.
No such evidence has been cited in the literature, however, that couldn't equally
well be applied to low-pressure regional metamorphism. High-pressure regional
metamorphism gem deposits are rare, but are discussed in the context of the
jadeite deposits of northern Burma.
Our descent into the earth's crust ends in Part IV at the base of the crust and
in the earth's upper mantle, some 100 miles below the earth's surlace. Here, in
this very-high-pressure, high-temperature environment two very special gem-
stones, peridot and diamond, are produced. These rare glimpses of the earth's
mantle are brought to the surlace in "mantle thrust sheets" and a rare type of
volcano known as a "pipe," respectively. The classic peridot of Zabargad Island,
Egypt and the new find at Argyle in Western Australia are used as examples. It
is worth noting that the Argyle pipe was unknown until 1980; but since its first
full-scale year of production in 1986, it has become the number one producer of
diamonds in the world, producing 30,000,000 carats in that first year.
This book examines most of the major geologic processes responsible for the
formation of gemstones, and in doing so, reviews what is known about nine
classic gem deposits. We hope that it will spur further interest in these deposits,
and can act as a catalyst to examination of the many deposits that have not been
highlighted here. Gemstones do reveal a great deal about Earth history, espe-
cially because they usually represent minerals in their purest form. Because they
are also unusually durable, they withstand the rigors of the geologic processes
that take place after their formation when other minerals do not. They often are
protective vehicles for small inclusions of liquids, gases, or other minerals that
tell us a great deal about remote geologic conditions that otherwise would not
be obtainable. Gemstones are very important artifacts of natural history.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book would not have been possible without the generous assistance of a
great number of friends and associates. The initial concept, which resulted in a
permanent exhibition at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County,
would not have been possible without the encouragement and generous support
of Alex Deutsch and Dr. Giles Mead. Dr. Anthony Kampf is a stimulating col-
league who was instrumental in the development of the Gemstones and Their
Origins concept. Dr. John Sinkankas was particularly encouraging in the trans-
formation of the original exhibit concept to book form. He has subsequently been
a tremendous help in reviewing major segments of the manuscript. Very special
thanks must also go to Dr. Edward Giibelin for his encouragement, advice, and
substantial editing. He was also very generous with his photo library.
Individuals who are far more familiar than I with specific gem-producing
regions or aspects of the geologic processes responsible for their formation re-
viewed appropriate chapters. Dr. Pieter Zwaan, Director of the National Museum
of Geology and Mineralogy in Leiden, the Netherlands, examined the chapter on
alluvial deposits and Sri Lanka. Dr. Ralph Segnit, Chairman of the Committee for
Gem Materials of the International Mineralogical Association and associated
with the CSIRO Division of Mineral Chemistry at Port Melbourne, Australia gave
invaluable input into the chapter on Australian opal deposits. The chapter on
Colombian emeralds was reviewed by Dr. John Sinkankas. Dr. Alan Jobbins of
the Gemmological Association of Great Britain was a tremendous help in obtain-
ing information on the Burmese jadeite deposits. Dr. Henry Meyer of Purdue
University and Dr. James Shigley of the Gemological Institute of America re-
viewed the chapter on Australian diamonds. Ray SpaIVell of Argyle Diamonds,
Ltd., provided invaluable information on the Argyle deposit. Special thanks goes
to Dr. Art Montana, Chairman of the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
at UClA for his encouragement and review of major segments of the manuscript,
as well as for providing me with access to the UClA geology library. Robin Walker
of DeBeers Consolidated Mines, Ltd., should also be thanked for his input and
advice on diamonds.
xiii
xiv Acknowledgments
Photographs are a very important part of this book, and very special thanks
must be given to Harold and Erica Van Pelt for their constant and very generous
support. They were always willing to help, not only with a great number of
superb photographs but also with advice when it was most needed. Spectacular
photographs of Sri Lanka were provided by Peter Horree of the Netherlands. The
family of the late Dr. John Sanders, formerly of the University of Melbourne,
provided the TEM photomicrographs of opal. The South Australia Department
of Mines and Energy provided the photographs of Australian opal mining. Pho-
tographs of Zabargad Island were generously provided by Dr. Peter Bancroft, and
Rock Currier opened up his slide library to provide slides of significant Zabargad
peridot specimens. Argyle Diamond Sales, Ltd., was responsible for photographs
of the Argyle mine and the spectacular pink diamond. The Smithsonian Institu-
tion, particularly John Sampson White, Associate Curator of Mineralogy, pro-
vided numerous photographs of gems from its collections.
Finally, no project such as this is possible without the understanding sup-
port of the editors, assistants, and graphic artists. Very special thanks must go to
Peggy Zeadow, who typed many drafts of this manuscript and generally kept me
organized in the process, and to Mary Butler for all the hours she spent over the
drafting table.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATIONS
The photographic team of Harold and Erica Van Pelt is synonymous with some of the world's finest gem
and mineral photography. They have traveled extensively throughout the world to visit and photograph
famous mines, major museum collections, as well as some of the world's finest private gem and mineral
collections. Their photographs have appeared in almost every important gem and mineral magazine. Most
of the covers for Gems & Gemology magazine have been provided by the Van Pelts. The Van Pelts have also
made major contributions to over half a dozen books on gems and minerals, including The Gem Collection
of the Smithsonianj Brazil, Paradise ofGemstonesj Emerald and Other Berylsj Gemstones of North Anlericaj
and Gem and Crystal Treasures.
In addition to being superb photographers, they are true connoisseurs of fine gem and mineral speci-
mens, jewelry designers, and classic lapidaries. They truly know and love their subject.
Many of the locality photographs have been taken by the author on his trips to study the gem deposits.
Others, such as those provided by Dr. Edward Giibelin are of localities that are no longer accessible and
are, therefore, especially rare. Many of the photographs have never before been published.
xv
PART I
Gemstones Deposited
by Water on the
Earth's Surface
Chapter 1. Gemstones Concentrated by Surface

Waters: The Gem Gravels of Sri Lanka
Chapter 2. Gemstones Formed from Surface Water:

1
~
v
[GUMeSCHEVSK. uSS~
Malachite ~ ....... ..'
NVECOUNTY
NEVAOA
TUrQuorse
I NI$ H APUFt. IRAN
KINGMAN, ARIZON.I\ rl~~" ----+ .. TUf(JUOlse
Turouolse
MAZAAUNl
Olamond
~ ~OOUAAez:'''NES.
BISaE:E.A~IZONA ~ VENEZUELA aaoeoRA RIVER.
Ma'aG/me Oiamoml SleARA. LEONe r~~~~
Diamond • Sapphire
~~CJ::!~8S. ~ KISSIOOUGOU,
TurQUOise GUINEA
Diamond
SuECo. CHI HUAHUA
·0 MeXICO
Ag.UB
QUERETARO. - " " " " "
MEXICO PlAUt,
Opal BRAZIL OUILP,E.
Opal OUEENSLAND
GUERERRO. MEX ICO
CHAP"DA. AUS T~"'lIA
Amethysr
SRA.ZI\.
Djamond 0"8'
I.IGMTNING RIDGE.
~~~«E:~~'AS''''''''---'''- ARIPUANA" AUSTRAI.I",
BRAZIL tRIO$. BRAZIL
Opal DtamOIH~ ,~ : ,Op~1
OJamond
AL TO PARAGUAI, MINAS GERAIS
BRAZil C,,,y.s:ooefyr
DIamond OIAMANTlNA ':... o
PAU D'ARCO. BRAZIL. ~ ..
PARA.. BR"ll l Dramond
AmOlh)"S' CORQPYlAN OEL. COPElON.. NEW SO
CHuQU.CAMAfA. BRAZIL. WAI.ES.
CHILE Drarnolld OPAL rON, - - - - - - , AUSTAAI.IA.
Tu'QuorSiIl OUeE.N$LANO D,amond
PARANAICAo AUSTRALIA
BRAZIl.
DI~mond
Opal
... CHEMICALLY DEPOSITED M INTA~E.
ru)8AGI. SO. AUSTR.6J.IA
BRAZIL
GEM DEPOSITS OlamorM' Opal
RIO GRANDE DO SUL COOeEA
PEOY, _ __
v
• ALLUVIAL GEM DEPOSITS 8RAZIl SO. AUSTRALIA WHITE CLIFFS.
Agate NEW SO WALES
Opal AUSTRALIA
Amefh>,sr
ANOAMOOKA. Ooal
AFt raGAS. URUGUAY SO AUSTRALIA
Agate Opal
.;o~ Amefhysr
Map 1. World distribution of important gem deposits formed by surface waters.

W ater plays an important role in the formation
of gem deposits at or near the surface of the
rapid settling of very heavy minerals is typical of
gold and platinum, which sometimes are referred
earth. Over millions of years, rocks exposed on the to as the noble metals because of their seemingly
earth's surface crumble under the destructive indestructible nature. Being very heavy, they com-
forces of the earth's atmosphere: Wind, rain, snow, monly concentrate in riverbeds to form what are
and ice all contribute to weathering, the slow, called placer deposits. Certain gemstones, notably
steady disintegration of rocks. With age, the jagged diamonds, rubies, sapphires, topazes, spinels, tour-
peaks of a young mountain range become rounded malines, jade, aquamarines, and chrysoberyls, al-
and eventually are leveled to mere bumps on the though not nearly as heavy, are also durable and
landscape. The minerals that are the building blocks dense and form similar placer deposits. Today,
of the rocks that make up these mountains break more gemstones are mined from ancient riverbeds
down over time to dijferent degrees and in dijferent than from any other type of deposit.
ways. Certain physical properties of the mineral, Water plays an entirely dijferent role when it
such as cleavage and hardness, determine the ability dissolves minerals. We seldom think of ordinary
of any given mineral to withstand such break down. water as capable of dissolving rock, but, given suffi-
Many minerals simply fracture into smaller and cient time, particularly if the water is acidic or basic
smaller fragments until they become sandlike or has been heated, it readily dissolves many kinds
grains, and some minerals dissolve completely and of minerals. Water contributes directly to the for-
are swept away in the water of streams and rivers. mation of minerals through chemical reaction,
Over millennia, billions of tons of rock weather evaporation, or cooling of heated water. When water
and erode, but some minerals in these crumbling carrying dissolved minerals encounters proper con-
rocks resist both mechanical and chemical break- ditions underground or other minerals with which
down. They are heavier than other minerals, and in it can react, it deposits new minerals in seams, cav-
water they tend to sink faster and thus travel less ities, and other open spaces. Gemstones that may
far. These durable and heavy minerals are thereby be formed in this way include turquoise, malachite,
concentrated anywhere that rivers or streams slow amethyst, rhodochrosite, and opal, the most valued
and allow them to drop to the streambed. Such of this group of gems (Map 1).
3
1
Gemstones Concentrated
by Surface Waters:
The Gem Gravels of Sri Lanka
When gemstones are hard and tough enough to The river's ability to carry these relatively heary
withstand mechanical breakdown, chemically re- mineral grains depends primarily on the velocity
sistant to attack by natural acids or bases, and of the water (Fig. 1-1). Where a stream naturally
dense enough to be concentrated, they can form slows, gemstones are deposited and, in time, con-
secondary placer or alluvial deposits. Diamonds, centrated much the same way as gold in a Califor-
rubies, sapphires, jades, tourmalines, topazes, spi- nia Forty-Niner's swirling gold pan. If the water
nels, aquamarines, and chrysoberyls are but a few velocity is too low, the lighter minerals are not re-
of the minerals that may be freed from the softer moved. If the water moves too fast, however, the
parent rock by weathering, eroded and transported heavier placer gems are swept away and perhaps
down a slope to the nearest stream, and further dissipated. A slackening of the stream's velocity
carried along by river currents and/or wave action. causes deposition and accumulation. In a stream,
Moving stream water sweeps away the lighter min- a change in gradient, meander, spreading, or ob-
erals, and the heavier placer minerals, such as dia- struction in the streambed can produce the re-
mond and corundum, sink to the bottom or are duced velocity that permits heavier minerals to
moved downstream a relatively short distance. drop and accumulate. Stream water may start out
Waves and shore currents also separate heary min- in the mountains rushing through canyons and
erals from lighter ones and coarse grains from finer sweeping everything along with it. The stream ve-
ones. From thousands of tons of debris, the few locity slackens in wide places, swirls around the
heary mineral grains in each ton of rock are grad- outside of bends in the channel, and creates back
ually concentrated in the stream or beach gravels eddies on the inside of the bend that allow heavier
until they accumulate in sufficient abundance to minerals to drop. Elsewhere in the streambed, nat-
be worth mining. ural irregularities called rijJles may form in alter-
5
6 Gemstones Concentrated by Surlitee Water8
streambed eliminates flawed or weaker areas of the

gemstone and leaves a much higher quality stone
in the final concentrate. Diamonds illustrate this
point well. Generally speaking, only about 10 per-
cent of the diamonds recovered from kimberlite
pipes are of gem quality. In placer deposits, how-
ever, almost 90 percent of the diamonds recovered
are of gem quality because the weaker stones have
been destroyed in transit.
Gem-bearing alluvial deposits are found
throughout the world. The diamondiferous beach
sands on' either side of the mouth of the Orange
River in South Africa and Namibia represent mil-
lions of years of weathering and erosion of kimber-
lites and are the richest placer diamond deposits
in the world (Webster, 1975; Wilson, 1948). Brazil
has important placer diamond deposits in Minas
Gerais, particularly near Diamantina, various areas
in Bahia, the Corrutela and Araguaia regions of
Mato Grosso, and the Gibue's district in Piaui. Pla-
cer diamonds are also found in several river sys-
tems in Guyana and Venezuela. Among the world's
oldest and most famous diamond mines are placer
deposits along the eastern edge of the Deccan Pla-
teau in India, including the Golconda mines in the
Central district of Maharashtra, and also in the
Eastern district in Orissa and the Bundelkhand
(Northern) district in Madhya Pradesh. This latter
district includes the famous Panna mines (Scalisi
and Cook, 1983).
The oldest diamond mines are thought to be
in Indonesia, the Sungai Landak placer deposits in
western Kalimantan (Borneo) and the placer
swamp deposits just west of Martapura in south-
eastern Kalimantan (Spencer et aI., 1988). Other
placer or alluvial diamond deposits are found in
China, particularly in the Yuan River in Hunan, and
in west and central African countries.
Many of the world's finest gem rubies and sap-
Figure 1-1. Diagram showing slowing of stream waters to
allow for the formation of alluvial deposits. Courtesy of phires came from placer deposits located not far
the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. from their parent rock source near Mogok in north-
ern Burma (Keller, 1983) and the Umba River of
northeastern Tanzania (Zwaan, 1974; Webster,
nating hard and soft layers of slates, schists, and 1961). Northern Burma also produces the world's
other layered rocks. Such natural riffles are excel- finest jadeite, in part from important placer depos-
lent traps for placer gems and may give rise to its in the Uru River valley at Hpakant. Many of the
exceedingly rich deposits (Guilbert and Park, 1986). world's pegmatite regions have placer deposits as-
In placer deposits, the gemstones are typically sociated with them. Proctor (1984) discusses the
sorted by size and density. Thousands of tons of important aspects of the placer mining of pegma-
rock may yield only a few gemstones in these tite gems in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Interestingly
stream gravels. Because of the rough treatment enough, emerald is too delicate to withstand the
they endured, however, the gems found concen- rigors of stream transport and is never found as' a
trated in placer deposits are of much finer quality placer mineral, but some has been found as crys-
than those found in the primary deposit or parent tals weathered from outcrops of emerald-bearing
rock. The abrasion and pounding along the rocks.
The Gem Gmwis of Sri Lanka 7
THE GEM GRAVELS OF SRI LANKA
The most prolific and diverse of all placer deposits

are found on the tropical island of Sri Lanka (for-
merly Ceylon), without doubt, one of the most im-
portant gemstone regions in the world. Its area is
about that of West Virginia, and it is situated in the
Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of India. It
has commonly been called the "island of gems"
because of the large and spectacular array of gems
it has produced for many centuries. No other gem
locality in the world has been so important for so
much of recorded history. Sri Lanka's gem gravels,
known locally as illarn, are best known for their fine
sapphires, which display a huge array of colors
(Fig. 1-2) . However, the rich gravels also yield
rounded pebbles of the cat's-eye and alexandrite
varieties of chrysoberyl (Fig. 1-3), ruby, garnet, spi-
nel, zircon, peridot, tourmaline, beryl, moonstone,
and many lesser known, rare gem species (Fig.
1-4). Ironically, the parent rock of these gemstones
remains uncertain but is undoubtedly somewhere Figure 1-3. Blue star sapphires andfine cat's-eye
in the extensive Precambrian metamorphic se- chrysoberyl are among the most prized ofSri Lanka's
quence that makes up over 90 percent of the island. gemstones. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Figure 1-2. Sri Lanka is best known for its sapphires.

Although sapphire is most commonly thought to be blue, Figure 1-4. These gem spinels, rangingfrom 6 to 55
. it kctually occurs in almost any color, as illustrated in carats, illustrate some of the many colors of spinel found
this photograph of sapphires from the Hixon Collection in Sri Lankan gem gravels. Stones from the Hixon
of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Collection of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt. County. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
8 Gemstones Concentrated by Surface Waters
Although gem deposits are found throughout and the treasures of the Forbidden City of China,
central and southern Sri Lanka, large-scale mining all boast a wealth of Sri Lanka's gemstones. Accord-
activity is confined mainly to the Ratnapura and ing to Zwaan (1982), one ofthe earliest descriptions
Elahera areas. Ratnapura, the "city of gems," is lo- of mining in Sri Lanka is that of Nearchus, Alex-
cated approximately 97 km southeast of the capital ander the Great's celebrated admiral, who in 334
city of Colombo and is, along with the surrounding B.C. mentioned an island not far from Persia where
area in Sabaragamuwa Province, the major gem- beautiful translucent gems were found. According
producing area on the island. The gems are found to Bancroft (1984), Marco Polo wrote of his 1292
in certain horizons in river and lake deposits that visit: "I want you to understand that the island of
have accumulated to a thickness of about 10 to 15 Ceylon is, for its size, the finest island in the world,
meters in the valley bottoms. The gemstones are and from its streams come rubies, sapphires, to-
usually found in the lowest gravels and sands over- pazes, amethyst, and garnet." Gunawardene and
lying weathered bedrock. In the last 20 years the Rupasinghe (1986) reported that during Marco Po-
Elahera area, located about 115 km northeast of lo's time the Elahera area was being mined exten-
Colombo in Central Province, has grown in impor- sively, particularly by foreigners, although this
tance to become the second largest producer of particular area was later abandoned and not redis-
gems in Sri Lanka. An estimated 35 percent of covered until hundreds of years later. In the mid-
the gemstones exported from Sri Lanka now 1940s, an engineer digging an irrigation ditch acci-
come from the Elahera area (Gunawardene and dentally rediscovered the Elaheradeposit. Mining
Rupasinghe, 1986). The Elahera gem field covers began immediately, but not until the late 1970s,
approximately 150 square km in the Matale and when the newly formed State Gem Corporation set
Polonnaruwa districts of Central Province. Most up a large-scale effort, did mining activity in the
mining activity is along the Kalu Ganga, a major Elahera area become significant. Today approxi-
tributary of the island's longest river, the Mahaweli mately 650 miners work in the area under the con-
Ganga. Access to the area is limited to the dry sea- trol of the State Gem Corporation.
son, and access permits must be obtained from the
State Gem Corporation, which totally controls the Geology of Sri Lanka
area. Less important mining areas in Sri Lanka in-
The island of Sri Lanka is primarily a part of the
clude Okkampitiya and Tissamaharama. The gem
large shield area that comprises peninsular India.
deposits of Sri Lanka have been studied in great
The area was apparently geologically stable over a
detail over the last century. The most important
very long period oftime. In Tertiary times, however,
works on the subject include Lacroix (1891), Hap-
the northwestern part of the island, including the
uarachehi (1960), Wadia and Fernando (1945),
Jaffua peninsula, submerged, and deposition of
Adams (1929), Giibelin (1968), Zwaan (1982), Herath
Miocene sediments resulted. A look at a geologic
(1982), and Gunawardene and Rupasinghe (1986).
map of Sri Lanka reflects this relatively simple his-
Their studies include general descriptions of the
tory (Fig. 1-5). Except for a narrow band of Miocene
island's geology, the nature of the gem occur-
limestones and calcareous sandstones on the is-
rences, and questions regarding the source of the
land's northwestern coast, Sri Lanka is underlain
island's gemstones.
entirely by regionally metamorphosed Precam-
brian rocks and intrusive granites. These rocks, be-
History
lieved to be a geological continuation of the
Detailed descriptions of the mining history of Sri Archaean complex of southern India, were divided
Lanka are almost nonexistent. However, brief writ- by Fernando (1948) into the khondalite series of
ten references to the gems of the island through paragneisses and associated granitic intrusions
much of historic time, together with major Sri Lan- and the underlying orthogneisses and para-
kan gems in many ancient treasuries, point to the gneisses of the Vijayan series. More recently,
great importance of the island for at least 2,500 Cooray (1967) eliminated the name khondalite and
years. According to Perera (1939) reference was subdivided Sri Lanka's Precambrian rocks into
made in the Scriptures to gems brought from Cey- three major units: (1) the Highland series, which is
lon to the court of Solomon. Bancroft (1984) states basically Fernando's (1948) khondalite series and
that in 500 B.C. Buddhists from northern India con- consists of garnetiferous gneisses with charnock-
quered the island and began mining and setting ites, quartzites, marbles, and granulites; (2) the Vi-
gems into jewelry for trade abroad. Certainly, royal jayan series, which consists of hornblende-biotite
treasures from all over the world, from the crown gneisses and associated granites; and (3) the South-
jewels of Great Britain to the Ming Dynasty tombs western group of cordierite, hypersthene, and sil-
The Gem Gra\;'t'ls of Sri Lanka 9
Figure 1-5. Geologic sketchmap of Sri Lanka,

with geologic units colored and the main
gem-producing areas identified with a
strippled pattern. The geologic units include
the Southwest group (green), the Vijayan
complex: (red), and the Highland group
(yellow)-all of Precambrian age. The much
younger Cenozoic sediments are shown in
blue and are limited to the northern two-
thirds of the island's coastline (Zwaan, 1982).
Courtesy of the Gemological Institute of
SRI LANKA America.
limanite gneisses. The Highland series is of greatest opment of concepts concerning the source of Sri
interest gemologically, for it is generally believed to Lanka's gems and studying the cordierite gneisses
be the most likely source for many of Sri Lanka's of the Southwestern group, Katz (1972) concluded
gemstones. Furthermore, almost all of the Ratna- that the unit could be a source: "the distinctive
pura and Elahera gem fields are underlain by rocks paragenesis of the cordierite gneisses suggest[s]
of this series. that they are a possible source rock for many of the
As with any significant placer gem deposits, gem deposits on the island." Of course, further
the original source for Sri Lanka's gem riches has contributions from pegmatites would supply the
been the subject of extensive research and great beryl, moonstone, tourmaline, topaz, and other
debate (Dahanayake, 1980; Gunaratne, 1976; Katz, typical pegmatitic minerals. In this connection
1969; Katz, 1971; Munasinghe and Dissanayake, Coates (1935) and Wadia and Fernando (1945)
1981). Finding the parent rock is interesting to the urged a pegmatitic origin for all of Sri Lanka's gem-
scientist, but very important economically to the stones, but their theory has been discounted on
gem industry. Adams (1929) believed that the gem geochemical grounds as well as the sheer lack of a
minerals were derived from the nearby and under- potential supply from the relatively minor pegma-
lying crystalline rocks of what is now designated as tite deposits of the area to account for the major
the Highland series. After summarizing the devel- gem deposits observed. Silva (1976) suggests that
the garnetiferous gneisses of the Highland series Ranasinghe (1980) classified the gem-bearing pla-
are the most likely sources because of their close cer gravels into three types: (1) residual, (2) eluvial,
proximity to the overlying gravels and because of and (3) alluvial. They determined that the residual,
geochemical considerations. The most convincing which consisted of gem minerals that were mostly
proof of parent rock for Sri Lanka's gemstones ob- deposited in situ, ranged in depth from a few cen-
viously would be gemstones in situ, and numerous timeters to about 10 meters below the surface.
attempts to locate the parent rock have been made These pits consisted mostly of angular rock frag-
during this century. To date, five minor localities of ments lying on top of weathered garnetiferous
corundum and/or spinel have been identified. gneisses.
Coomaraswamy (1903) was the first to locate The eluvial beds contained minerals trans-
sapphire in situ on the island when he found ported only short distances along the slopes of
opaque, nongem crystal in a thin band of decom- ridges and were deposited close to the parent rock.
posed feldspathic granulite near Kandy. In the fol- These beds usually were found exposed on the
lowing year he located on the Haldummula Estate surface and consisted of slightly rounded rock frag-
near Haputale fallen blocks of a corundum-silli- ments lying on weathered garnetiferous gneisses.
manite rock with tabular blue prisms of corundum. The alluvial beds contained gem materials that
A third in situ occurrence of corundum was de- were transported along streams and were depos-
scribed by Coates (1935) who found hexagonal ited at great distances from parent rocks. These
crystals up to 2.5 cm long associated with feldspar beds were found at depths up to 15 meters below
and biotite in a narrow zone bordering a pegmatite the surface in ancient stream channels, and the
dike in decomposed granulite at Aparekka near rock fragments were typically rounded as a result
Matara. Wells (1956) found in situ gemmy blue co- of transport.
rundum near the Non Pareil Estate at Ohiya. The The majority of gem minerals found in all beds
crystals occur on the micaceous margins of a band were blue and pink sapphires and blue spinels.
of crystalline limestone and a syenite. Wells also Dahanayake, Liyanage, and Ranasinghe (1980) con-
found mauve spinel with the corundum and concluded that the corundum and spinels were both
cluded that the corundum was the result of desili- derived from garnetiferous gneisses, and localized
cation of the syenite magma by limestone. In the skarn deposits, white topaz, beryl, tourmaline, and
late 1950s, Cooray and Kumarapeli (1960) found chrysoberyl may have come from the localized peg-
corundum as isolated porphyroblasts in a gneiss matites.
near Gangodo and considered the host rocks to be
almost identical to those described by Coomaras-
wamy (1903) but originating from the metamor- Mining Techniques
phosed equivalents of silica-poor sediments.
The method of gemstone recovery has remained
Gunaratne (1976) found corundum in Kolonne.
unchanged for centuries. Before digging, a long
pole is driven into the ground to determine how
Gemstone Occurrences
deep the gem gravel (illam) lies. If it is found only a
Typical Sri Lankan gem gravels are lens-shaped, few feet below the surface, a simple circular pit is
generally a few centimeters to almost a meter in sunk to the gem layer, but if the gravel is deeper, a
thickness, and are located from 2 to 15 meters vertical shaft with timbered sides must be con-
below the surface. The most abundant constituent structed (Fig. 1-6). Due to the prevailing shallow
is quartz in the form of well-rounded pebbles. water table, the shaft quickly floods and pumping
Dahanayake, Liyanage, and Ranasinghe (1980) or bailing is required almost continually.
provided a detailed study of sediments in 30 gem As the shaft deepens, palm-planked scaffolding
pits at Ratnapura and Elahera to determine the must be built, and the walls must be reinforced
modes of occurrence of the gem-bearing gravels with palm leaves (Fig. 1-7). The only tools are a pick,
and possible sources of the gem minerals. Both shovel, spade, and basket. The basket is filled with
areas are characterized by ridge-and-valley topog- mud and passed up and out of the pit and then
raphy, with the valley floors covered with uncon- returned for more. When the pit becomes too deep
solidated alluvials underlain by Highland series for baskets, the mud and water are pulleyed to the
rocks, mainly garnetiferous gneisses and granulite, surface in cans.
with rare occurrences of marbles and pegmatites. When the gem gravel layer is reached, the
The pits in the valley floor tend to be very wet, gravel is taken from the pit or shaft and washed in
whereas those found on the ridge slopes are dry a large round basket known as a watti (Fig. 1-8). The
and easier to study. Dahanayake, Liyanage, and watti duplicates nature's concentrating method. As
The G!:'lU Grawls of Sri Lanka 11
Figure 1-6. View down a

mine shaft in Sri Lanka.
Photo by P. Horree.
Figure 1-7. In Sri Lanka,

hand-operated hoists are
often used to lift buried gem
gravel (known as illam) to
the surface. Here, a vertical
shaft has been dug through
manyfeetofoverburdento
reach the illam containing
sapphire, cat's-eye
chrysoberyl, spinel, and
many less-known gems.
Photo by P. Horree.
Figure 1-8. Washing of the Wam in Ratnapura, Sri Lanka. Photo by P. Horree.
The Gem Gravels of Sri Lanka 13
Figure 1-9. Hand-dredging the riverbedfor gem gravels in Sri Lanka. Photo by P. Horree.
the miner swirls water in the basket, the lighter mamoti to scoop up the gravel from the riverbed,
sand and mud are washed away, leaving behind deposit it in the ditch, and allow the fast-moving
the heavier pebbles. dam water to remove the small and lighter min-
After the washing, the basket is turned over to erals from the gem concentrate (Fig. 1-9). The con-
the sorter, usually the most experienced miner, centrate is then placed into the circular basket
who quickly but thoroughly inspects the gem con- used throughout Sri Lanka for further panning that
centrate. leaves a high-grade concentrate of gem gravel.
Mining gravels from present-day riverbeds re- Then the sorter takes over and looks for the glisten-
quires dredging, a technique now much employed ing gemstone pebbles (Gubelin, 1968).
in many areas of central and southern Sri Lanka, Today, under the auspices of the State Gem
especially the Kelani Ganga and the Kalu Ganga. Corporation, large-scale surface mining has been
To prepare for dredging, miners erect a brush dam initiated. Overburden is scraped off with bulldoz-
wherever the stream naturally slows and thus con- ers to expose the gem gravels. The gem gravels are
centrates gem minerals or where streams are still washed by hand in the traditional round bas-
dammed and the water is forced to flow faster over kets, however, and sorted and dried in the sun for
the wooden dams. They then dig a ditch just up- a final hand sorting to recover any gem material
stream from the dam. In the fast-moving river that was overlooked in the washing operation (Dis-
water, the miners use long-handled scrapers called sanayake, 1981).
14 Gemstones Concentrated by Surfiwe Waters
Famous Gems from Sri Lanka

jewels and royal treasuries contain significant sap-
Gunawardene and Rupasinghe (1986) record peak phires, cat's-eyes, chrysoberyls, and spinels mined
annual gem exports from Sri Lanka in 1980 at more over many centuries on Sri Lanka. Most notable of
than $40 million, but exports dropped off signifi- these is probably the British crown jewels, which
cantly from 1980 and now appear stabilized at be- include the spectacular 104-carat Stuart sapphire,
tween $15 and $20 million. These figures are official undoubtedly of Sri Lankan origin, and the Black
and do not include illicit mining and trade. Prince's "ruby," a rounded red spinel weighing ap-
In addition to producing and exporting many proximately 170 carats and of probable Sri Lankan
millions of dollars worth of gems every year, Sri origin. The Queen's jewels also contain the Timur
Lanka has also provided the world with some of its "ruby," a spinel weighing 361 carats. The Smithson-
most famous and important gemstones. Crown ian Institution (National Museum of Natural His-
Figure 1-10. The 138.7-carat Rosser Reeves star ruby from Sri Lanka is considered to be
one of the finest in the world. It is part of the gem collection of the National Museum of
Natural History (NMNH #G4257J. Photo by Dane Penland, courtesy of the Smithsonian
Institution.
The Gem Gravels of Sri Lanka 15
tory) has its share of important Sri Lankan phires, weighing about 100 carats, and the famous
gemstones, such as the 138.7-carat Rosser Reeves Star of India from Sri Lanka. The Natural History
star ruby, possibly the finest of its kind anyvvhere Museum of Los Angeles County has some of Sri
(Fig. 1-10); the 58.2-carat Maharani cat's-eye chry- Lanka's more unusual gemstones in record sizes,
soberyl; and a 65.7-carat alexandrite that is thought most notably a 158-carat sinhalite and a 569-carat
to be one of the largest in the world. Sri Lankan phenakite. The state collection in Colombo, Sri
blue sapphires are well represented at the Smith- Lanka, has a major 362-carat star sapphire, the Star
sonian by the very fine 98.6-carat Bismark and the of Sri Lanka. Very fine rough crystals may be as rare
423-carat Logan sapphires (Fig. 1-11). The American or rarer than their faceted counterparts and are
Museum of Natural History in New York is the re- highly sought after by museums and individual
pository for one of the finest Padparadscha sap- collectors (Fig. 1-12).
Figure 1-11. The 423-carat Logan sapphire is one of the highlights of the gem collection of
the Smithsonian Institution. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Figure 1-12. Qften rarer than a well-cut gem is a well-formed crystal of the same material.
Crystals such as this beautiful pair of blue sapphires, the larger ofwhich is 3.5 centimeters
high, are occasionally found in the gem gravels of Sri Lanka. Photo by Harold and Erica
Van Pelt.
The Gem' Gravels of Sri Lanka 17
REFERENCES
Adams, F. D. 1929. The geology of Ceylon. Can. Jour. Res., Katz, M. B. 1971. The Precambrian metamorphic rocks of
1:425-511. Ceylon. Geol. Rundschau 60(4):1523-1549.
Bancroft, P. 1984. Gem and Crystal Treasures. Western Katz, M. B. 1972. On the origin of the Ratnapura-type gem
Enterprises-Mineralogical Record, Fallbrook, Cal. deposits of Ceylon. Econ. Geol. 67:113-115.
488 pages. Keller, P. C. 1983. The rubies of Burma: A review of the
Coates, J. S. 1935. The geology of Ceylon. Ceylon Jour. Sci. Mogok stone tract. Gems & Gemology 19(4):209-219.
19:(8)101-187. Lacroix, A. 1891. Gneissose rocks of Salem and Ceylon.
Coomaraswamy, A. K. 1903. Occurrence of corundum in Geol. SUTV. India 24:157-200.
situ near Kandy, Ceylon. Geol. Mag. 59:348-350. Munasinghe, T., and C. B. Dissanayake. 1981. The origin
Cooray, P.G. 1967. An Introduction to the Geology ofCey- of gemstones of Sri Lanka. Econ. Geol. 76(5):1216-
Ion. National Museums of Ceylon, Colombo. 1225.
Cooray, P. G., and P. S. Kumarapeli. 1960. Corundum in Perera, N. M. 1939. Report of the Sub-committee of the
biotite sillimanite gneiss from near Polgahawela, E;>cecutive Committee of Labor, Industry and Com-
Ceylon. Geol. Mag. 97:480-487. merce on the Marketing and Cutting of Ceylon Gems.
Dahanayake, K. 1980. Modes of occurrence and prove- Ceylon Government Press, Colombo. 34 pages.
nance of gemstones of Sri Lanka. Mineralium Depos- Proctor, K. 1984. Gem pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil:
ita 15:81-86. Exploration, occurrence, and aquamarine deposits.
Dahanayake, K., A L. Liyanage, and A. P. Ranasinghe. Gems & Gemology 20(2):78-100.
1980. Genesis of sedimentary gem deposits in Sri Scalisi, P., and D. Cook. 1983. Classic Mineral Localities of
Lanka. Sedimentary Geology 25:105-115. the World: Asia and Australia. Van Nostrand Rein-
Dissanayake, C. B. 1981. The mineral potential of Sri hold, New York. 226 pages.
Lanka, prospects for the future. Indian Geology Silva, K. K. M. W. 1976. Some geological aspects of the
Assoc. Bull. 13(1):23-36. Elahera gem field, Sri Lanka. 32d Ann. Sessions Sri
Fernando, L. J. D. 1948. The geology and mineral deposits Lanka Assoc. for the Advancement of Science.
of Ceylon. Bull. Imperial Institute 46:303-325. Spencer, L. K., S. D. Dikinis, P. C. Keller, and R. E. Kane.
Giibelin, E. 1968. Die Edelsteine der Insel Ceylon. Edition 1988. The diamond deposits of Kalimantan, Borneo.
Scriptar, S. A, Lausanne. 152 pages. Gems & Gemology 24(2):67-80.
Guilbert, J. M., and C. F. Park, Jr. 1986. The Geology of Ore Wadia, D. N. and L. J. D. Fernando. 1945. Gems and semi-
Deposits. W. H. Freeman and Co., New York. 985 precious stones of Ceylon. Ceylon Dept. Mineral Rec.
pages. Prof Pap. 2:13-44.
Gunaratne, H. S. 1976. On the occurrence of gem corun- Webster, R. 1961. Corundum in Tanganyika. Gems &
dum in Kolonne. Jour. of Gemmology 15(1):29-30. Gemology 10(7):202-205.
Gunawardene, M., and M. S. Rupasinghe. 1986. The Elah- Webster, R. 1975. Gems: Their Sources, Descriptions, and
era gem field in central Sri Lanka. Gems & Gemology Identification. 3d ed. Butterworths, London, En-
22:80-95. - gland.
Hapuarachehi, D. J. A C. 1968. Cordierite and wollaston- Wilson, N. W. 1948. The world's diamond deposits. Min-
ite-bearing rocks of Southwest Ceylon. Geol. Mag. ing Mag. 79:329-341.
105:317-324. Wells, A J. 1956. Corundum from Ceylon. Geol. Mag.
Herath, J. W. 1982. Mineral resources of Sri Lanka. Sri 93:25-31.
Lanka Geol. SUTV. Dept. Econ. Bull. 2. Zwaan, P. 1974. Gamet, corundum, and other gem min-
Katz, M. B. 1969. Cordierite gneisses: Source rock for erals from Umba, Tanzania. Scripta Geol. 20:41.
some gem deposits of Ceylon. Proc. Ceylon Assoc. Zwaan, P. 1982. Sri Lanka: The gem island. Gems & Gem-
Adv. Sci. l(abstr.):60-61. ology 18(2):62-71.
2
Gemstones Formed
from Surface Water:
Water at or near the earth's surface plays an im- Among reaction-type minerals formed in this
portant role in the formation of some gem min- way is malachite-CuzC03(OH)2-which forms
erals. SUiface water is capable of dissolving many when acidic copper-bearing solutions react with
minerals, particularly when provided a great deal limestone-CaC03 -or dolomite-CaMg( CO)2 (Fig.
of time to do so. As a result, it carries away com- 2-1). Malachite, which is used in jewelry and carv-
ponents in solution that remain dissolved until, ings, usually forms as stalactites and stalagmites in
under appropriate conditions, new minerals are large, open cavities. The world's finest malachite
deposited. Precious opal and other gemstones historically comes from the Ural Mountains of the
form from surface water under special conditions Soviet Union, principally from the Gumeschevsk
that may include chemical reactions, cooling of mine, near Sysert, and the Mednoroudiansk mine
waters previously heated by nearby molten rock, in the Nijni Tagil district. Masses of fine malachite
and evaporation. Rainwater, for example, combines weighing up to 250 tons have been recovered from
with atmospheric carbon dioxide to produce car- these mines (Scalisi and Cook, 1983). These mines
bonic acid, a weak natural acid. If such water seeps are largely defunct, however, and almost all fine
into the earth and encounters sulfides (such as malachite produced today comes from the Katanga
pyrite, FeS), sulfuric acid, a much stronger acid, is district of Zaire.
produced, which dissolves minerals, transports Rhodochrosite (MnC0 3) forms in exactly the
their chemical elements, and permeates other same manner as malachite if manganese is present
rocks to form new minerals. rather than copper. The vividly colored stalactites
19
20 Gemstones Formed from Surface Water
Figure 2-1. Diagram showing the idealizedformation Figure 2-2. Diagram showing the idealized process for
process for malachite. Courtesy of the Natural History the formation of amethyst at or near surface
Museum of Los Angeles County. temperatures. Courtesy of the Natural History Museum
of Los Angeles County.
and stalagmites are beautiful ornamental material. solves chemical elements from the rocks through
The only commercially important source of such which it passes. The water cools as it nears the
massive rhodochrosite is in Catamarca Province in surface, until it can no longer hold the elements in
Argentina, where it occurs interbanded with other solution. After depositing new minerals, the cooled
carbonates formed at low temperatures. water sinks back into the earth to be heated again
Turquoise-CuA16(P04)4(OH)8.4HzO-forms in and recycled.
a similar manner where acidic copper-bearing so- Agate and amethyst (SiO z) may be formed hy-
lutions seep into porous volcanic rocks and react drothermically (Fig. 2-2). If the amount of dissolved
with minerals containing aluminum and phospho- silica is great, agate (a form of microcrystalline
rus. The rounded, bumpy surfaces on turquoise quartz) is deposited in layers on the walls of cavi-
boulders are typical of minerals that form from ties in rock. As the silica content of the mineraliz-
cool water. The world's finest turquoise has formed ing water decreases, large quartz crystals such as
in this manner and historically has come from the amethyst grow on the agate layers until the water
Nishapur district of Iran (Giibelin, 1966). Today, is either evaporated or depleted of silica.
very similar material is mined in Hubai Province, Amethyst can be formed over a wide range of
China, and vast quantities of turquoise have been temperatures and is, in fact, a relatively common
produced in the southwestern United States constituent of hydrothermal veins. Lack of geo-
(Pogue, 1919). chemical data on these localities prevents definite
Groundwater heated by buried magma, or hy- classification as low-temperature or hydrothermal
drothermal water, rises toward the surface and dis- formations, and for this reason amethyst deposits
The Opals of Australia 21
are described in both types of environment. Some mation of opal deposits by evaporation. During
deposits may grade from hydrothermal to the low- isolated showers, rainwater percolates down
temperature (below 50°C) deposits referred to here. through permeable rocks rich in silica (silicon
Currently, the most important amethyst deposits dioxide) such as certain kinds of sediments, vol-
are in the Artigas district of Uruguay and adjacent canic ash, or tuff. Water dissolves silica from these
Rio Grande do SuI area of Brazil, where amethyst rocks and carries it down to the water table, where
forms the lining of huge cavities in basalt trap rock. it is concentrated. The water table is high during
Other important Brazilian amethyst deposits are the rainy season, and the water fills open spaces
found near Maraba in the state of Para, where the formed by fractures, decomposed organic matter,
amethyst fills fractures and cavities in quartzite, or dissolved minerals. During the dry season, some
and near Pau D'Arco, where the amethyst is of the water evaporates, making the remainder rich
thought to be the alluvial equivalent of the Maraba in colloidal silica. Finally, opal, a form of solid silica
material because it occurs in the same mountain containing water, is deposited in the open spaces
range (Epstein, 1988). Important amethyst deposits in the rock (Fig. 2-3).
are also found in Namazambwe, Zambia, and the Opal consists of billions of submicroscopic
Ural Mountains of the Soviet Union. spherical particles of silica stacked regularly to-
In arid regions, where rainfall is limited to sea- gether. The play of color that characterizes pre-
sonal showers, the conditions are ideal for the for- cious opal results from the interplay of light
Figure 2-3. Diagram

showing the formation of
opal with ajluctuating water
table. Courtesy of the
Natural History Museum of
Los Angeles County.
Figure 2-4. Photomicrograph of precious opal showing orderly arrangement of silica

spheres at 50,000 times magnification. Photo by J. V. Sanders.
Figure 2-5. Photomicrograph of common opal showing disordered arrangement of silica

spheres at 50,000 times power magnification. Photo by J. V. Sanders.
(diffraction) with the scacked particles and can different type of opal with a dark color can at its
occur only when the silica particles are all spheres best show fiery reds and all colors. In 1915, when
of the same size that have settled in a very orderly White Cliffs was in decline, the Coober Pedy opal
pattern like neat rows of oranges in a box (Fig. 2-4). field in the Stuart Range in South Australia, about
Most opal is made up of variable-size particles in a 900 km north of Adelaide, was found: It produced
disorderly array, and this "potch" opal does not huge quantities of opal that was very similar to that
show play of color (Fig. 2-5). found at White Cliffs. The Coober Pedy deposit re-
Known opal occurrences are widespread mains one of the principal producers of opal in
around the world. Geologically, these occurrences Australia today (Kalokerinos, 1971). In 1930, the An-
can be divided into volcanic and sedimentary, damooka opal field was discovered approximately
based on their enclosing rock type. Deposits found 600 km north of Adelaide. Although its opal was of
in volcanic rocks, usually rhyolitic lavas, are gen- a very high quality, today it produces on only a
erally of high quality but almost invariably contain limited scale. The Mintabie deposit is located in a
opal that is too unstable to be suitable for jewelry. most inhospitable area approximately 240 km
Excellent examples of this type of opal are found northwest of Coober Pedy. Although it had been
in Virgin Valley, Nye County, Nevada; Queretaro, known for some time, its location deterred signifi-
Mexico; Dubnik, Czechoslovakia; Gracias, Hondu- cant production until 1976. Today it rivals Coober
ras; and in Indonesia. Typically, these opals occur Pedy as the greatest producer of opal in Australia
as vesicle and fracture fillings in the lava. Opals in (Scalisi and Cook, 1983).
sedimentary rock are much more stable and there-
fore are resistant to drying out and cracking. Al- General Geology and Occurrence of Opal
most all such opals are found in Australia.
Except for the deposit at Mintabie, all significant
opal deposits in Australia are confined to Creta-
ceous marine sediments that were deposited in an
area known today as the Great Artesian Basin (Fig.
AUSTRALIAN OPAL DEPOSITS 2-6). During Jurassic and Cretaceous times, the
Great Artesian Basin was a shallow inland sea, into
The finest precious opal in the world is mined in
which were deposited great thicknesses of sands
the arid, desolate regions of eastern and central
and sandy clays. These sediments are widespread
Australia. Best known of the deposits are those at
over portions of New South Wales, Queensland,
Andamooka, Coober Pedy, and Mintabie in South
and parts of South Australia. David (1950) assigned
Australia; Lightning Ridge and White Cliffs in New
all these opal-bearing units to the Lower Roma se-
South Wales; and the many smaller deposits in
ries. Subsequent workers have assigned individual
Queensland.
unit names for opal-bearing units in each of the
opal-producing areas.
History
The Roma series is typically composed of light
The first discovery of opal in Australia is uncertain, bluish gray shales or shaley mudstones with iso-
but credit is commonly given to Johannes Menge, lated beds of sandstones and limestones. The units
a German geologist who found opal near Angaston, above the opal-producing beds are made of
about 65 km north of Adelaide in South Australia leached, soft quartz and kaolin-rich sediments
in 1849. However, a recent visit to this area by Ralph (David, 1950). Capping this is a siliceous duricrust
Segnit and John Jones (personal communication) (silcrete), which is highly resistant to weathering
revealed only common opal to be present. The first and erosional processes (Markham and Basden,
recorded discovery of precious opal in Australia 1975).
was in 1872, when boulder opal was discovered at During the late Cretaceous and early Tertiary
Listowel Downs in central Queensland. Sporadic periods, the region experienced rapid climatic
mining took place on a limited basis in the Ero- change: The temperate shallow marine sea became
manga mioeral field from 1875 to about 1900, and a desert habitat. The Miocene period was a time of
in 1890 the discovery of the White Cliffs opal field, regional peneplanation (David, 1950), resulting in a
approximately 200 km northeast of Broken Hill in period of deep chemical weathering about 15 to 30
New South Wales, made opal mining a significant million years ago. This weathering was essential to
industry in Australia. This deposit produced signif- the formation of opal. The erosional breakdown of
icant quantities of fine opal for 25 years. In 1903 feldspars on the smface liberated silica and kaolin-
black opal was discovered at Lightning Ridge in itic clays, and the silica was removed in solution
northern New South Wales. This new and totally by colloidal transport (Markham and Basden, 1975).
24 Gemstones Formed from Surface Watpr
W.A.
KURNALPI
COOLGARDIE ~ t LGOORLIE
o 500
KILO METERS
SA Department of Mines
AUSTRALIAN OPAL DEPOSITS

Figure 2,-6. Location map showing distribution of major opal deposits in Australia.
Courtesy of the Department of Mines and Energy, South Australia.
The water transporting the silica is estimated to be the spheres became before settling to the bottom
capable of dissolving up to 100 ppm of silica at 20° of the trap and forming a layer of uniformly ac-
to 25°C (Darragh et al., 1966). The solution perco- creted particles. With further evaporation and
lated downward to the now lowered ground water water absorption from the underlying clays, this
table (Jones et aI., 1966). This silica-rich solution mass solidified to form precious opal (Darragh et
became trapped in cavities, planar discontinuities, at., 1966; Jones and Segnit, 1966), Opal forms
and impermeable layers and replaced wood, shell, through the evaporation of silica-rich water. If the
and bone (Markham and Basden, 1975), all at shal- water evaporates at a constant rate, solid silica
low levels (Darragh et aI., 1966). As the solution spheres of the same size and shape form. These
remained in its trap, it became increasingly rich in spheres settle into an orderly array, trapping water
silica by evaporational processes that took place between them. The orderly arrangement of silica
with the general lowering of an otherwise fluctuat- spheres diffracts light to yield the play of color
ing water table. When the percentage of silica in characteristic of precious opal (Sanders, 1964,
solution reached a critical point, the silica devel- 1968). If the water evaporates at an uneven rate,
oped as minute colloidal particles that agglomer- solid silica particles of various shapes and sizes
ated to form small spheres, creating a gelatinous might form . These larger irregular particles settle
semisolid. The longer the spheres remained sus- in a disorderly array and become potch opal,
pended in the soil before the gel formed, the larger which cannot diffract light or display play of color.
TIlt' Opals of Australia 25
Opal Occurrences 1901). The most spectacular opal replacement

found was a complete skeleton of a plesiosaur-like
Today these sedimentary host rocks appear as ero-
animal, almost all of precious opal.
sional highs at elevations 15 to 20 meters above the
The sequence of sediments from the surface
recent alluvium that blankets the opal-producing
downward is described for this area as follows
areas IMarkham and Basden, 1975). The average
IRalph,1961):
depth from the surface to the opal-producing lay-
ers is 15 to 25 meters, depending on the topogra- 1. A siliceous material, Grey Billy. It has a maxi-
phy IFig. 2-7). Because of the arid environment, the mum thickness of 20 feet.
opals in local surface outcrops of opal veins have 2. A layer of clays with small clasts of Grey Billy
become desiccated, highly fractured, and econom- incorporated within the beds. The maximum
ically worthless from their exposure to air ICroll, thickness is about 11 feet, but in some areas it is
1950). In the late 1800s, outcrops of the highly totally absent.
weathered opals led miners to the deposits of fresh 3. A siliceous unit created of pisoliths similar to
opal underground. Grey Billy that is believed to represent an older
paleo surface level. Commonly known as geyser,
it has a maximum thickness of 8 feet.
White Cliffs, New South Wales 4. A thinly bedded unit of fine-grained sandstones
with a clayey matrix. The parent material is be-
The tiny township of White Cliffs in New South
lieved to be feldspathic sandstones.
Wales is located about 200 km northeast of Broken
5. Bandstone is fine-grained sandstone that has
Hill. It was officially opened in 1889 and pro-
had high-silica secondary fluids pass through
claimed the first opal mine in Australia. It has been
and solidify. Just below this level is where most
particularly famous for its crystal opal, a transpar-
of the profitable mining takes place.
ent colorless opal displaying an intense play of
color. Mining activity waned in 1902, and little ac- The opal occurs in this area as thick veinlets
tivity other than prospecting has taken place at within the host material. It is discontinuous lat-
White Cliffs since 1915. The geology at White Cliffs erally. Many of the fossils, including wood pieces,
is very similar to that at Lightning Ridge. Opal oc- have been replaced by opal IMacNevin and
curs in horizontal and vertical veins in a claystone. Holmes, 1977). Because ofthe massive mining activ-
Specimens exhibiting banding of worthless patch ity around White Cliffs in the earlier part of this
and precious opal were common at White Cliffs. century, most of the area has been worked out
Precious opal also commonly replaced fossil shell (Croll, 1950). In the mid-1980s, however, mining ac-
and wood and is best known among collectors for tivity has been renewed with the introduction of
its opal pseudomorphs after glauberite (Gurich, heavy equipment.
Stony soil
STUART RANGE
..
. ', . , ' ,' . .' .' .... : .....
.... ... ... .. " " . .
' . .. "
- - - - - - - Wh ite claystone
Opal _ _
Opal leve l -rn777ZZ
SA Departme nt of Mines
Diagrammatic section showing

OPAL OCCURRENCE at COOBER PEDY
Figure 2-7. Idealized geological cross-section of opal beds at Coober Pedy. Courtesy of the
Department of Mines and Energy, South Australia.
26 Gemstones Formed from Suli'ace Water
Lightning Ridge , New South Wales

white and hardens upon dl)'ing. The Finch Clay-
Lightning Ridge is located in central northern New stone, or "opal dirt," is 1 to 6 meters thick and may
South Wales, about 770 kIn from Sydney. It has pro- be as much as 30 meters below the surface. It is
duced the finest opals in the world since it was Cretaceous in age, as are all the sediments at Light-
first mined commercially in 1901 (MacNevin and ning Ridge. Opal commonly occurs near the junc-
Holmes, 1977). Lightning Ridge is most famous for tion of the Finch Claystone and the overlying
its black opals (Figs. 2-8 and 2-9), which have red, Wallangulla Sandstone . This overlying unit is 2 to
blue, and yellow fire with a dark rather than white 10 meters thick with a very hard silicified base
matrix; pure black potch is also found here. The called the steel band. Capping the Cretaceous se-
opal typically is found as irregular nodules, or quence is a fine-grained white Coocoran Claystone
"nobbies," that may represent the opal replace- up to 4 meters thick that is nicknamed "shin
ment of sponges or corals. It also occurs as thin cracker" because it hardens when exposed at the
seams in vertical and horizontal joints in a char- surface. Most of the opal is found 6 to 10 meters
acteristically soft gray Finch Claystone that turns below the surface (Whiting and Ralph, 1961).
Figure 2-8. The striking play

of color against a dark
background is
characteristic of black opal
from Lightning Ridge, New
South Wales. Photo by
Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
The Opals of Austmlia 27
Figure 2-9. This 26-carat opal from the J. Traurig collection is a spectacular el'ample of
fine black opalfrom Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Australia. Photo by Harold and
Erica Van Pelt.
28 Gemstones Formed from Surt'ace Water
Coober Pedy, South Australia The ground surface at Coober Pedy is covered
by gibbers, siliceous boulders (silcrete) that range
The Coober Pedy mining area is in the Stuart Range in diameter from 1 to 25 centimeters, These boul-
of South Australia about 970 kIn north of Adelaide ders form an almost continuous layer over the to-
(Fig, 2-10), It opened in 1915 but did not see mas- pography and at places can make walking difficult,
sive expansion until 1919, when the value of opals Opal occurs in layers up to 30 meters below
suddenly tripled because of the postwar demand, the surface, Immediately below the surface is a sil-
Today, Coober Pedy is the largest producer of opals iceous crust about 2 meters thick that is so resis-
in Australia, The opal workings extend for almost tant to erosion that it commonly has created low
40 kIn along the range, The name Coober Pedy (Ku- tabletop mesas in the surrounding area, Immedi-
papitiJ is the aboriginal term for "white man in a ately below the siliceous crust is a highly weath-
hole" (Hiem, 1965); the miners here lived below ered pink claystone approximately 10 to 15 meters
ground because such hOUSing was cheap to exca- thick, with another siliceous layer at its base, Most
vate and enabled them to escape the heat and flies opal is found in the next layer, which is pink to
during the extreme summer heat. The most com- brown sandstone with veins of precious opal run-
prehensive description of Coober Pedy has been ning through it, Opal pseudmorphs after shell are
written by Barnes and Townsend (1982), Other im- common (Fig, 2-11), The main opal layer is about
portant references include Hiem (1967), Winton 30 meters below the surface (Keeling, 1977), Mining
(1925), and Jones and Segnit (1966), operations at Coober Pedy are typical of those
Figure 2-10. Overview from the east of opal deposit at Coober Pedy in South Australia,
Photo courtesy of the Department of Mines and Energy, South Australia,
Figure 2-11. Opalized clam shells from Coober Pedy, South Australia. Specimen measures
approximately 10.5 by 7.5 cm. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
30 Gemstones Formed from SuIiiwe Water
Figure 2-12. In the opal fields ofCoober Pedy, South Australia, large drilling rigs or
blowers bore cylindrical shafts down to the opal-bearing strata. Photo courtesy of the
Department of Mines and Energy, South Australia.
Figure 2-13. Tunneling machine working underground at Figure 2-14. Large drilling rig working at Coober Pedy,
Coober Pedy, South Australia. Photo courtesy of the South Australia. Photo courtesy of the Department of
Department of Mines and Energy, South Australia. Mines and Energy, South Australia.
found elsewhere in Australia, using blowers (Fig. 2- (1967) and particularly in Barnes and Townsend
12), tunneling machines (Fig. 2-13), and large drill- (1982J.
ing rigs (Fig. 2-14). According to Townsend (1981), the geology of
the Mintabie deposit is not like any other opal de-
Andamooka, South Australia posit in Australia, in that the opal occurs in Paleo-
zoic rather than Cretaceous rocks. The Mintabie
Andamooka is just west of Lake Torrens, 600 km
beds are a series of gently dipping kaolinitic white
north of Adelaide, and near the great Olympic Dam
sandstones whose age has been determined by the
copper-silver-uranium deposit. It was discovered
early Cretaceous claystones and clayey sands
in 1930 by two boundary riders who found surface
above them. They are pOSSibly Devonian.
fragments of opal below what is now Treloar Hill.
The Mintabie beds exhibit widespread surface
The first commercial mining began in 1933. Mining
exposures. Opal is found in the upper parts of the
today extends over a 13-km by 5-km area. An excel-
beds, where they exhibit pronounced vertical and
lent description of Andamooka can be found in
oblique jointing, and in less silicified sandstones
Barnes and Townsend (1982J.
down to depths of 20 meters. The beds also exhibit
The sedimentary sequence at Andamooka is
cross-bedding, and opal seams develop along these
almost identical to Coober Pedy (Johns, 1968). The
cross-bedding structures.
opal is found approximately 25 meters below the
Mining at Mintabie has been almost exclusively
surface at the junctions of the underlying clay and
open pit with the aid of bulldozers, trench diggers,
overlying sandstone beds. It fills cracks and cavities
and blasting. Today, however, underground min-
in a thin band about 30 cm thick that miners
ing is gradually replacing the open pit operations.
termed concrete band conglomerate. Below the
Opal has been found as far as 8 km away, and the
opal-producing bed are 8 to 10 meters of Jurassic
potential of Mintabie is great.
Algebuckina sandstone, which lies unconformably
over Upper Precambrian Tent Hill Formation
Queensland
quartzite. A detailed discussion of the geology can
be found in Nixon (1960). The living facilities at Queensland opal occurrences are widespread in a
Andamooka, like those at Coober Pedy, are rather 300-km-wide belt extending from near Hungerford
spartan. The supply of water drawn from sur- on the border with New South Wales northwest 900
rounding wells is just enough to supply people's km to the Winton area. The most prolific mining
drinking needs, and in dry periods water must be areas are the Eromanga and Quilpie districts in the
brought by tanker from nearby artesian wells. Be- south and Winton and Opalton in the north. Ac-
cause the mines are near larger towns and the cording to Senior and associates (1977), who wrote
roads to the area are good, buyers from Sydney and a comprehensive report of the geology of Queens-
other cities can drive right to the township and land's opal deposits, known opal deposits in that
negotiate directly with the miners (Croll, 1950). state number about 60.
However, Andamooka has steadily declined in pro- The opal deposits of southwestern Queensland
duction since the early 1970s, and many miners have been worked since about 1875, when, accord-
have given up their claims in favor of the Coober ing to Connah (1966), activity was concentrated in
Pedy or Mintabie areas. the Eromanga mineral field. Production into the
twentieth century was sporadic, at best, due to the
inhospitable terrain. Jackson (1902) wrote that
Mintabie, South Australia
most of the mines were deserted when he visited
The Mintabie opal field, located about 240 km the area in 1901. With the introduction of open pit
northwest of Coober Pedy, is second only to that mining in the 1960s, the area became active once
area in its production of fine opal. The Mintabie again, and Senior and associates (1977) reported a
deposit is particularly significant because it pro- peak in mining activity in 1973, when 20 bulldozers
duces some black opal that rivals the finest from were working in the Eromanga area alone. Mining
the classic Lightning Ridge source. The deposit activity has declined since then with the depletion
was first discovered in 1921 during the digging of a of old workings and the lack of any new discoveries
water well (Barnes and Townsend, 1982), but, due despite the geological potential of the area. The
to its remoteness and lack of water, it was not Hayricks mine, located about 80 km northwest of
worked commercially until 1976. Mining activity Quilpie, is the only significant producer today.
mushroomed with the discovery of a major deposit All of the opal deposits in Queensland are
of fine opal in 1977 and remains high today. De- found in the Eromanga Basin, which is part of the
tailed descriptions of Mintabie are found in Hiern much larger Great Artesian Basin of Australia. The
opal is confined to the Winton Formation of Late the amateur alike is noodling, which is picking
Cretaceous age and, like opals elsewhere in Aus- through discarded mining material to look for opal.
tralia, is a product of deep chemical weathering. In However, the visitor must be careful not to intrude
Queensland, the opal is typically associated with on a claim being worked! Some miners have taken
kaolinitic weathered areas, and almost all the opal to using large conveyer belts loaded with the opal-
is found within ironstone-enriched layers, lenses, rich discarded material and subjecting it to ultra-
and concretions. violet light to detect the opals (Australian Gem In-
Opal from Queensland is very distinctive. It is dustry Association, 1983), as some opal fluoresces
characteristically bright blue, green, and red in an brightly.
ironstone boulder matrix that is typically rounded
concretions with desiccation cracks that provided
Famous Opals
the open spaces necessary for opal deposition. The
width of the fracture and the quality of the opal South Australia produces more than 80 percent of
appear to be correlated. The narrower the fracture, the world's opal. Accurate opal production figures
the finer the opal. Because much of this boulder prior to 1971 are very difficult to obtain, but con-
opal occurs in thin veins, it is usually cut as a nat- servative estimates for South Australia are approx-
ural doublet with an ironstone backing. Yowah imately $41 million for the period ending in 1971.
nuts, the small, hollow ironstone concretions According to the better records that have been kept
found at the Yowah opal field near Eulo Station, since then, South Australia produced $204 million
are an exception. They are rarely larger than 5 cm in opal up to 1977, and an average of about $40
in diameter, about walnut size. million annually since 1977 (Barnes and Town-
Prior to 1958, all opal mining was done by send, 1982).
hand. A shaft was sunk to the opal layer (usually An excellent discussion of the famous opals of
about 25 meters), and then the miner used a hand Australia can be found in Leechman (1961). By far
pick to follow the worthless potch opal. On seeing the most spectacular and famous opals are the in-
a flash of precious opal, the miner would gently credible black opals from Lightning Ridge. The But-
carve the sandy clay away so that no precious opal terfly or Red Admiral stone from Lightning Ridge is
would be fractured. The opal-rich material was considered to be one of the most beautiful opals in
then taken to the surface and run through a pud- the world. Found in 1922, it weighs about 50 carats.
dler, a wood sluice with gratings through which Other famous Lightning Ridge opals include
water ran, to remove the clay and sand and leave the Empress, Black Prince, Pride of Australia (226
only the noble opal. carats), Crystal Princess, Flame Queen, Pandora
Today miners sink their shafts with the aid of (711 carats), and Light of the World (252 carats)
large drill rigs. Tunnels are excavated with hori- (Bancroft, 1984).
zontal augers or dug out by means of explosives Other opal-producing areas have also pro-
and jackhammers, which are also used to follow duced noteworthy gems. One of the largest uncut
signs of opal. The hand pick may still be used to gem opals was the Noolinga Neera, an 86-ounce
extract good material. The debris is removed by mass found about 4 meters below the surface by a
buckets raised by machinery and automatically group of Australian Aborigines at Andamooka. It
emptied at the surface, or removed by means of was cut into a 205-carat oval stone (Scalisi and
blowers (Fig. 2-12), a kind oflarge vacuum machine. Cook, 1983).
Bulk material from the opal horizon may be treated The Olympic Australis, weighing almost 20,000
by means of wet or dry puddling. Dry puddling carats, is one of the largest uncut opals in exis-
(rumbling) is a new technique used only within the tence. It was found at Coober Pedy in 1956 and
last 5 to 10 years. It uses the same principle as the named for the Melbourne Olympic Games and the
original puddler but it uses no water, which is im- Aurora Australis.
portant in an arid environment. Open pit mining The only opal assigned to royalty is the Anda-
using bulldozers has been employed at most fields, mooka Opal. It weighed 6 ounces when found in
especially Mintabi, where the ground is harder. 1949 and was cut into a 203-carat cabochon. This
The top 50 to 60 feet are removed to expose the stone was set into a necklace and presented to Her
opal layers, but this method has not proved partic- Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
ularly profitable and is unpopular with the mining The National Gem Collection in the Smithson-
community (Holmes et al., 1982). ian Institution has numerous important Australian
A profitable technique for the professional and opals, including white opals weighing 345,162,155,
146, and 105 carats and black opals weighing 58.8, Jones, J. B., J. Biddle, and E. R. Segnit. 1966. Opal genesis.
54.3, and 44 carats. In 1985 the Smithsonian Insti- Nature 210:1353-1354.
tution was presented with the Zale's opal, a 318.44- Jones, J. B., and E. R. Segnit. 1966. The occurrence and
carat, polished free form from Australia. formation of opal at Coober Pedy and Andamooka.
Aust. Jour. Sci. 29:129-133.
Kalokerinos, A. 1971. Australian Precious Opal. Thomas
Nelson (Aust.) Ltd., Melbourne.
REFERENCES Keeling, J. L. 1977. Opal in South Australia. Mineral Infor-
mation Series, Department of Mines and Energy.
Australian Gem Industry Association. 1983. Australian Eastwood, S. Australia, 16 pages.
Opals and Gemstones: Nature's Own Fireworks. The Leechman, F. 1961. The Opal Book. Ure Smith, Sydney.
Australian Gem Industry Ass'n. Lim., Sydney, pp. 2- 263 pages.
11. MacNevin, A. A. and G. Holmes. 1977. Mineral Industry of
Bancroft;, P. 1984. Gem and Crystal Treasures. Western New South Wales No. 18: Gemstones. 2d ed. New
Enterprises-Mineralogical Record, Fallbrook, CA, South Wales Geological Survey, Sydney.
488 pages. Markham, N. C., and H. Basden. 1975. The Mineral Depos-
Barnes, L. c., and I. J. Townsend. 1982. Opal, South Aus- its of New South Wales. Geological Survey of New
tralia's Gemstone. Geol. Survey of South Australia South Wales, Department of Mines, Sydney, Aus-
Handbook 5. D. J. Woolman, Eastwood, S. Australia. tralia, 525-533.
157 pages. Nixon, L. G. B. 1960. Andamooka opal field. Min. Rev.
Connah, T. H. 1966. A prospector's guide to opal in west- (Adelaide) 109:13-23.
ern Queensland. Queensland Government Mining Pogue, J. E. 1919. The Turquois. 3d memoir, National
Journal 6723-39. Academy of Sciences 3.
Croll, I. C. H. 1950. Opal industry of Australia. Bureau of Ralph, R. E. 1961. The White Cliffs Opal Field, New South
Mineral Resources Geology and Geophysics (Aus- Wales. New South Wales Department of Mines Tech-
tralia) Bull. 17:7-47. nical Report 7 for 1959, Sydney, Australia, 7-18.
Darragh, P. J., A. J. Gaskin, B. C. Terrell, and J. V. Sanders. Sanders, J. V. 1964. Colour of precious opal. Nature
1966. Origin of precious opal. Nature 209:13-16. 204:1151-1153.
David, T. W. E. 1950. The Geology of the Commonwealth Sanders, J. V. 1968. Diffraction of Light by Opals. Acta
ofAustralia. I (of III):482-487. Crysta 424:427-436.
Epstein, D. 1988. Amethyst mining in Brazil. Gems & Scalisi, P., and D. Cook. 1983. Classic Mineral Localities of
Gemology 24214-228. the World: Asia and Australia. Van Nostrand Rein-
Giibelin, E. 1966. The ancient turquoise mines in Iran. hold, New York. 226 pages.
Gems & Gemology 12:3-13. Senior, B., D. McColl, B. Long, and R. Whiteley. 1977. The
Gurich, G. 1901. Edelopal und Opal: Pseudomorphosen geology and magnetic characteristics of precious
von White Cliffs, Australia. Neues Jahrb. Mineralogie opal deposits, Southwest Queensland. Jour. Austra-
14:472-483. lian Geol. Geophysics 2241-251.
Hiern, M. N. 1967. Opal deposits at Coober Pedy. Q. geol. Stone, D. M., and R. A. Butt. 1976. Australian Precious
Notes, Geol. Surv. S. Aust. 13:6-7. Opal. Perwinkle Books, Sydney.
Hiern, M. N. 1967. Coober Pedy opal field; deposits in Townsend, I. J. 1981. Discovery of early Cretaceous sedi-
northern South Australia; Mintabie opal field; Myall ments at Mintabie opal field. Q. geol. Notes, Geol.
Creek opal field. Min. Rev. (Adelaide) 122:5-22. Sur. S. Aust. 77 :8-15.
Holmes, G., S. R. Lishmund, and G. M. Oakes. 1982. A Whiting, J. W., and R. E. Ralph. 1961. The Occurrence of
review of industrial minerals and rocks in New Opal at Lightning Ridge and Grawin, with Geological
South Wales. Geological Survey of New South Wales. Notes on County Finch. New South Wales Depart-
Dept. of Mineral Resources Bull. 30:199-202. ment of Mines Technical Report 6 for 1958, Sydney,
Jackson, C. F. V. 1902. The Opal Mining Industry and Dis- Australia, 7-21.
tribution of Opal Deposits in Queensland. Geological Winton, L. J. 1925. The Coober Pedy (Stuart's Range) opal
SUIvey of Queensland Publication 177. field. South Australia Mining Review 42.
Johns, R. K. 1968. Geology and mineral resources of the
Andamooka-Torrens area. Bull. Geol. Surv. S. Aust.
41:103.
PART II
Gemstones of Igneous-
HydrothermalOrigin
Chapter 3. Hydrothermal Gem Deposits: The

Emerald Deposits of Colombia
Chapter 4. Gemstones Formed in Pegmatites:

Gem Pegmatites of Minas Gerais) Brazil
Chapter 5. Gemstones Formed Directly from Molten

Rock: The Ruby Deposits of Chanthaburi-
Trat Thailand
35
~
~
v
• A_MURS1NKA,. USSR
Ametnyst
rr
DO XUA.NMU'-' CHI NA
•
~
Peridot
GRANT CO~ NEW MEXtCO

'.
Moonstone
SAN lUIS POfOSl
MExICO
Topaz
GUEAEARO. MEXICO
Amerny.s'
RIO GRMiDE 00 NORTE,
BR~IL.
JACOBINA. BAM' .... E!lR"-Z11.

Ame,ny,s,
BAHI" BRAZIL
M INAS GERAIS, BRAZIL :.. 0
ESPIRITO SANTO, ~ "
BAA.2:IL
OURO PRETo, MINAS
OEAAIS. 8A.t.ZII. ANAK' E. QUEENSLANO.
Top,u AUSTRALIA
Sapphire
I~ RIO GRANOe 00 SUI. Zircon
. HYDROTHERMAL GEM DEPOSITS BRAZil
Ametny.s,
A.LTOt.IGONHA.
• MAGMATIC GEM DEPOSITS AQare MOZAMBIQUE
ARTIGAS. UAUQUA"t'
Am&lhyst \J
• PEGMATITES (Inc luding Aquamarine, A".,. O'~
Kunz ite, Morganite, Topaz and Tourmaline,
unless otherwise noted)
CJ
.~
Map 2. World distribution of important gem deposits of igneous-hydrothermal origin.

V ery hot water vapors escaping from magmas
deep in the earth's crust are known as hy-
ers (or zones) of minerals. The last fluid remaining
in cavities in the center of the pegmatite is very hot
drothermal fluids (from hydro, meaning "water," water containing rare elements such as beryllium,
and thermal, meaning "hot"). These fluids often boron, and lithium. Gemstone crystals may form
carry rare elements, such as fluorine and beryllium, from this fluid to create gem pockets. Pegmatites
away from the magma via fractures in surrounding are found throughout the world (Sinkankas, 1981).
rocks and sometimes combine with near-surface The Pala area of San Diego County, California (Jahns
water to pick up additional elements. The resulting and Wright, 1951), the Sverdlovsk region of the So-
solutions eventually cool and form mineral veins in viet Urals (Bauer, 1904), and recently the Altai area
the fractures. Under appropriate physical and of northwestern China (Keller and Wang, 1986) and
chemical conditions, these veins may contain gem- the Nuristan area of Afghanistan are among the
stones such as topaz, amethyst, benitoite, and em- most important. No area can match the pegmatite
erald. region of Minas Gerais, Brazil, for its sheer volume
Topaz, especially, is found in a variety of envi- of production. Since World War II, Brazil, especially
ronments. The most valuable topaz occurs in hy- Minas Gerais, has eclipsed the rest of the world in
drothermal veins near Ouro Pre to, Minas Gerais, the production of pegmatitic gemstones.
Brazil. Here, so-called imperial topaz occurs in Water plays an essential role in the formation
deeply weathered veins of potassium feldspar and of all the deposits considered thus far. Such is not
qUartz (Keller, 1983; Olsen, 1971). Amethyst is a the case for gemstones such as ruby, sapphire,
common component of hydrothermal veins, espe- moonstone, and zircon, which grow directly from
cially in metallic ore deposits. Benitoite, one of the molten rock while it is still deep in the earth. The
rarest of gemstones, is found only in hydrothermal magma must cool slowly at first to allow the gem-
veins that cut serpentine bodies in the coast range stone crystals to grow. Then, while most of the
of San Benito County, California (Louderback, 1907). magma is still liquid, it rushes upward, carrying the
The most important of the hydrothermal gem- gem crystals with it. It cools and solidifies in frac-
stone deposits is the emerald-mining district at tures near the surface or as volcanic lava on the
Muzo, Colombia. This deposit in the Andes Moun- surface. Most often the magma is alkali basalt.
tains of central Colombia, 60 miles north of the cap- Today, most of the world's peridot comes from
ital city of Bogota, has yielded the finest emeralds in mantle-derived inclusions in a single alkali basalt
the worldfor more than 400 years. deposit on the San Carlos Indian Reservation in Gila
Pegmatites, granitelike rocks with very large County, Arizona. Alkali basalts are dark volcanic
crystals, produce more kinds of gemstone than any rocks that are the result of the partial melting of
other type of deposit. A pegmatite forms when the rocks in the mantle at depths between 20 and 60
water-rich portion of molten granite is squeezed miles. The molten rock rises rapidly and exPlosively
into a fracture in the solid surrounding rock. As the to the earth's surface, where it erupts as a volcano.
pegmatite liquid cools in the fracture, it begins to Qften alkali basalts carry with them solid fragments
solidify at the outer walls first and then toward the of mantlerock containing abundant forsterite oli-
center. The liquid changes in composition, and the vine, which sometimes occurs in large, transparent,
minerals forming from it also change to create lay- gem-quality nodules.
37
Alkali basalts, almost always deeply weathered, In tropical climates alkali basalts decompose
supply the world with most of its rubies, sapphires, rapidly, leaving the gem crystals behind to accumu-
and zircons. These deposits are commonly region- late in alluvial gravels. Southeastern Thailand now
ally widespread, such as at Inverell, New South produces more than 70 percent of the world's fine
Wales, and Anakie, Queensland, areas in Australia, rubies from decomposing basalts or the resulting
in Fujian Province, China (Keller and Keller, 1986), alluvial gravels (Keller, 1982) (Map 2).
and especially in Indochina.
REFERENCES
Bauer, M., and L. J. Spencer. 1904. Precious Stones Itrans. of 1896 Keller, P. C., and F. Wang. 1986. A survey of the gemstone re-
Gennan textl. Charles Griffin & Co., London. 647 pages. sources of China. Gems & Gemology 22111:3-13.
Keller, P. C. 1982. The Chanthaburi-Trat gemfield, Thailand. Louderback, G. E. 1907. Benitoite, a new California gem mineral.
Gems & Gemology 18(41:186-196. Bulletin of the Dept. of Geology, Univ. of California 5191.
Keller, P. C. 1983. The Capao Topaz deposits, Duro Preto, Minas Olsen, D. R. 1971. Origin of topaz deposits near Duro Preto,
Gerais, Brazil. Gems & Gemology 19111:12-20. Minas Gerais, Brazil. Econ. Geol. 66141:627-631.
Keller, A. S., and P. C. Keller. 1986. The sapphires of MingxL
Fujian Prov., China. Gems & Gemology 22111:41-45.
38
3
Hydrothermal
Gem Deposits:
The EIllerald Deposits of Colombia
When hot magma rises through the earth's crust, it with a wide array of elements, cool, and minerals
often fails to reach the surlace to erupt as a vol- crystallize in any existing opening in the surround-
cano. Instead, it forms large magma bodies that ing rocks, such as those formed by tension frac-
cool very slowly to form large granitic masses, tures or faults created by the force of the intruding
which, if large enough, are called batholiths. magma, gas cavities in an overlying lava flow, or
Around the edges of the cooling magma, hot, bedding planes in layered sedimentary rocks.
mineral-rich solutions are given off and mix with Every type of opening, in every type of rock, is sus-
cooler circulating groundwaters that percolate ceptible to hydrothermal invasion.
downward from the surlace. With the heat from the Hydrothermal deposits, which range in tem-
still hot magma as a driving force, the hydrother- perature from 50°C to 500°C, form many of our
mal solutions circulate continuously through avail- most important precious and base metal deposits
able fractures and pores in the surrounding rock and also some of our more interesting gem depos-
and constantly leach additional elements from its, including those containing amethyst, topaz, red
both the cooling magma and the surrounding rock beryl, benitoite, and the world's finest emerald.
(Fig. 3-1). When temperatures and pressures are The nature of these powerlul mineralizing hy-
high, water is capable of dissolving and transport- drothermal solutions has been the subject of much
ing large amounts of minerals. If such solution is speculation. Geochemists have examined three
very basic (high pHi, it dissolves and transports basic lines of evidence to solve the mystery: (1) hot
much quartz, thus accounting for its abundance as springs, where the mineralizing process can be ob-
a vein mineral. In time, the solutions, now laden served today; (2) fluid inclusions found in crystals,
39
40 Hydrothermal Gem Deposits
and transporting minerals, openings in the sur-

Gemstones Fonned
in Hydrothermal Veins rounding rocks through which the solutions can
be channeled, sites for the deposition of the min-
erals, and a chemical reaction, cooling, or drop in
pressure for deposition.
Fissure veins, the most common and impor-
tant form of hydrothermal deposit, require the for-
mation of the fissure itself and the mineralizing
process to fill that fissure. The two processes may
or may not be separated by a long period of time.
Most fissure veins are narrow and range in length
from a few feet to a few miles. Usually, the fissure
veins are found in groups that form systems.
Although many factors may be involved in hy-
drothermal deposition, including chemical reac-
tions similar to those responsible for turquoise and
malachite at lower temperatures, the most impor-
tant factors are changes in temperature and pres-
sure. In general, a drop in temperature and/or
pressure decreases a mineral's solubility and
causes crystallization. Veins commonly change in
mineralogical character with depth because of the
changes in temperature and pressure at the time
of deposition. Vein intersections and increases in
width are common causes for the drop in pressure
that causes mineral deposition.
Hydrothermal solutions start their journey
with heat supplied by the magma, and the solu-
tions naturally cool as they travel away from the
source. The rate of cooling depends on the char-
acter of the surrounding rock and the size of the
channel.
Likewise, solutions are usually generated at
great depth under high pressure. As they travel
upward through the crust, pressure lessens and
crystallization takes place.
Many hydrothermal veins consist of solid inter-
locking grains of various mineral species but may
contain well-formed crystals pointing to the center
of the vein away from the wall rock.
The hydrothermal vein minerals usually reflect
the type of rock the fluids have flowed through and
the type of magma that gave rise to the fluids ini-
tially. Quartz is by far the most common vein min-
eral in hydrothermal deposits, and feldspar is also
common. If the fluids passed through calcium-rich
sediments, such as in the case of the Colombian
Figure 3-1. Diagram showing process leading to the emerald deposits, however, the major vein mineral
formation of hydrothermal gem deposits. Courtesy of the may be calcite.
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Hydrothermal gem deposits are widespread
around the world. The most common are amethyst
which represent a direct sample of the mineraliz- deposits, such as those of the Ural Mountains in
ing fluid; and (3) the alteration of rocks surround- the Soviet Union and in Mexico, Zambia, and Brazil.
ing deposits. The world's finest amethyst comes from hy-
The formation of hydrothermal deposits re- drothermal veins in the 75 amethyst localities in
quires mineralizing solutions capable of dissolving the Mursinka district in the Soviet Urals, Tusha-
The Emerald Deposits of Colombia 41
kalva being the most important. Here, amethyst oc- entirely of fibrous white natrolite. The benitoite
curs with drusy quartz in veins that cross a weath- crystals occur with black neptunite and dark red
ered granite (Scalisi and Cook, 1983). Similar joaquinite and are usually attached to the serpen-
deposits are found near Maraba and Pau d'Arco, tine vein wall (Louderback, 1907).
both in Para, and in Rio Grande do SuI, Brazil. Ame- By far the most important hydrothermal gem
thyst is also commercially mined in Guererro, Mex- deposits are the emerald deposits of Colombia.
ico; Lusaka, Zambia; and Artigas, Uruguay. Some of These deposits are unique in that most of the
these have been noted in Chapter 2 for lower tem- world's emeralds occur in metamorphic rocks as a
perature deposits. by-product of that environment. Recently, emer-
Many of the world's topaz deposits are of peg- alds have been reported in hydrothermal veins
matitic origin. However, a unique and highly desir- from Panjahir, Afghanistan (Bowersox, 1985). In Co-
able variety, aptly called Imperial, comes from lombia, however, calcite-rich hydrothermal veins
highly weathered hydrothermal veins in the area crossing Cretaceous sediments yield the world's
of Ouro Preto, in Minas Gerais, Brazil (Keller, 1983). finest emeralds.
Topaz euclase, muscovite quartz, and hematite
were deposited with large amounts of orthoclase
as hydrothermal fluids filled tension fractures in COLOMBIAN EMERALD DEPOSITS
the Sabara formation, a phyllite of Precambrian age.
Deep chemical weathering has reduced the phyl- The two principal emerald-mining districts in Co-
lite to clay and the orthoclase to kaolin, leaving the lombia today are Muzo and Chivor. The 360-
resistant topaz, enclase, hematite, and quartz square-km Muzo district, at an elevation of about
(Olsen, 1971). 600 m, is located 105 km north of the capital city of
Benitoite, the beautiful and rare state gemstone Bogota in the valley of the Rio Itoco, a tributary of
of California, is found only in hydrothermal veins the Rio Minero. The main mines in the Muzo dis-
cutting serpentinous rocks near the headwaters of trict include the Tequendama, Santa Barbara, EI
the San Benito River in San Benito County, Califor- Chulo, Coscuez, and Peiias Blancas (Fig. 3-2). The
nia. These veins, up to 5 cm thick, consist almost district is owned by the Colombian government
Alto Canga i
Mine
• Building
_ ... - River or stream
.:"=---"::.= Road or trail
elevation
in meters
Figure 3-2. Index. map showing the location of the mines and other geographical features
of the Muzo district, Boyaca, Colombia.
Mine
• Building
:=:::::. Road or trail

Contour line
showing elevation
in meters
Figure 3-3. Index:. map showing location of

mines of the Chivor district, Almeida, Boyaca,
Colombia.
and is currently being worked by several private Over the past half century, numerous papers
mining companies operating under restricted have described the Colombian emerald mines,
leases. usually from the view of recent visitors to the min-
The Chivor district, located about 75 km north- ing areas (MacFadden, 1934; Switzer, 1948; Cope-
east of Bogota in the Almeida township of Boyaca, land, 1950; Anderton, 1950, 1965; Bancrofi, 1971; Ten-
is part of the exceedingly rugged country where hagen, 1972; Ringsrud, 1986). A detailed overview
the Rio Rucio and Rio Sinai join to form the Rio of the Colombia deposits is found in Keller (1981);
Guavio (Fig. 3-3). Feininger (1970) points out that see Sinkankas (1981) for additional references.
the mine is at an elevation of about 2,300 m and
that just 2 km to the east, in sight of the mine, the
History
Rio Guavio, at an elevation of only 700 m, slices
through a ridge that is even higher than the mine. Emeralds mined in Colombia have been used for
In addition to the Chivor mine, the Chivor district trade and personal adornment throughout much
includes the Buenavista mine, immediately to the of Central and South America since pre-Columbian
south of Chivor, and the Las Vegas de San Juan times (Bray, 1978; Dominguez, 1965). When the first
mine, located 8 km to the southwest and com- Spaniards arrived in the New World in the early
monly known as the Gachala mine (Anderton, sixteenth century, emeralds were being traded as
1955). The Chivor mine is the only major privately far south as Peru and Chile and as far north as
owned emerald mine in Colombia. The Buenavista Mexico. Reportedly, the Spanish conqueror Pizarro
and Gachala mines operate as concessions under sent four chests of emeralds, undoubtedly of Co-
a 1959 law, and their owners pay a 25 percent roy- lombian origin, from Peru to the king of Spain in
alty to the Colombian government (Colombian 1533 (Ball, 1931). Possibly the famous Inquisition
American Business, 1979). necklace is an example of such emeralds (Fig. 3-4),
Figure 3-4. The 300-year-old Spanish Inquisition necklace contains 15 emerald beads and
more than 360 diamonds. It is part of the gem collection of the National Museum of
Natural History, Washington, D.G. (NMNH #G5113J. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Figure 3-5. A view looking east over the Chivor emerald mine, which is situated at an
elevation of about 2,300 m. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Chivor was the first operating emerald mine from Phillip III of Spain to enforce the law. By this
discovered by the Spaniards in their conquest of time, however, the Indian population had already
the New World (Klein, 1941) (Fig. 3-5). Gonzalo Ji- been decimated. As a consequence of this loss of
menez de Quesada saw the first sign of emeralds cheap labor and the litigation that followed the
in Colombia at Turqmeque, Boyaccl, in 1537 (Co- royal orders, production of Colombian emeralds
lombian American Business, 1979). Quesada sent declined drastically. In 1650, the Muzo mines were
Captain Pedro F. de Valenzuela to find the source. declared royal property, and production further
That same year, he located the well-developed declined. By 1675, the Chivor mine had been aban-
Chibcha Indian mine of Somondoco, later to be doned; its location became a mystery that endured
named Chivor after a nearby valley. Soon thereafter, for over 200 years. Muzo continued to be worked
the Spaniards were vigorously working the Chivor sporadically throughout the seventeenth, eigh-
mine with local Indians as slave labor. teenth, and nineteenth centuries (Barriga and Bar-
Five years after the founding of Santi sima Trin- riga, 1973) until the government declared it the
idad de los Muzos in 1559 (Wokittel, 1960), the National Emerald Domain in 1871 (Colombian
Muzo and Caijma Indians' mine was located some American Business, 1979). When the mines at Muzo
7 km to the west on the Hoco Hill. The Spaniards came under government control, production all
began mining the Muzo area in 1567, and initial but ceased, and lawless disorder came to charac-
production is said to have overshadowed produc- terize the area. This situation has changed only
tion at Chivor (Feininger, 1970). By the end of the very recently.
sixteenth century, both Chivor and Muzo were vig- Soon after Muzo was placed under government
orously worked by Indian slave labor. In 1592, the control, the Chivor mine was rediscovered on the
first recorded grant of Chivor was given to Fran- basis of a description written almost 300 years ear-
cisco Maldonado de Mendoza by Antonio Gonza- lier. In 1888, Colombian mining engineer Don Fran-
lez, president of the New Kingdom of Granada. By cisco Restrepo found a manuscript dating back to
this time, however, the treatment of the Indian the early seventeenth century in a Dominican con-
slaves was so inhumane that on September 22, vent in Quito, Ecuador. This manuscript, written
1593, President Gonzalez issued a 39-article decree by Fray Martin de Aguado, described the location
protecting the Indians (Johnson, 1961). This decree of the Chivor mine as the only place in the Andes
was soon followed in 1602 by several royal orders where one could see through a pass· in the moun-
Figure 3-6. A view looking to the north over the Muzo mines. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
tains to the plains of the Orinoco. Restrepo's search

Recent History and Production
for the legendary mine ended successfully in 1896.
Although legal problems with the government Emerald mining under government control has
hampered Restrepo's early mining activities, his been a questionable business proposition. In 1946,
early twentieth-century partnership with German the government entrusted the management of the
mining engineer Fritz Klein coincided with the lift- Muzo mines, including the power to regulate all
ing of some of these restrictions and promising mining and marketing of emeralds from that dis-
production at the mine. When World War I broke trict, to Banco de la Republica (Feininger, 1970).
out, however, Klein returned to Germany for mili- However, illicit emerald mining and dealing con-
tary service. Restrepo died at Chivor, and, with Ger- tinued to be widespread, with an estimated loss to
many's defeat, Klein lost all rights to the mine as a the government of more than 28 million pesos dur-
result of alien property legislation. In 1919, Chivor ing the period 1946 to 1969, when the bank relin-
was purchased by the Colombian Emerald Syndi- quished control of the Muzo emeralds to the
cate, Ltd., a U.S. company. Since then it has Empresa Colombiana de Minas (ECOMINAS), the
changed hands many times, with varying degrees government's mining agency. The situation at
of success, and has been managed by such notable Muzo then worsened, to the point that in 1973
mining engineers as Peter W. Rainier (Rainier, 1942) more than 900 people were killed in feuds, and the
and Willis Bronkie. The Chivor mines are currently mines were forced to close. The mines stayed offi-
in the hands of the Quintero family. cially closed until 1977, when the government so-
In 1953, a new mine was discovered 8 km licited bids for 5-year leases on the Muzo mines,
southwest of Chivor at Gachala, reportedly when a the Coscuez mine, and the Peiias Blancas mine.
woodcutter's mule uncovered an emerald-bearing After extensive negotiations, the Muzo lease was
rock (Anderton, 1955). Although the mine has pro- awarded to the Sociedad Minera Boyacense Ltda.,
duced only sporadically since 1953, in 1967 an 858- the Coscuez lease went to Esmeraldas y ¥inas de
carat crystal, generally considered one of the finest Colombia, SA. (ESMERACOL), and the Peiias Blan-
in existence, was found there. The 5-cm hexagonal cas lease went to the Quintero brothers, who also
prism, known simply as the Gachala emerald, is control the Chivor mine (Colombia American Busi-
housed in the Smithsonian Institution (Trapp, ness, 1979). Today, Muzo is considered the most
1969). important emerald mine in the world (Fig. 3-6).
Figure 3-7. Looking eastward at guaqueros working in the Rio /toco below the main
mining operation at Muzo. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Unfortunately, 5-year leases of Muzo encour- evening. These sorted parcels are then sealed and
aged the lessees to mine the area as rapidly as taken to Bogota for further grading and subsequent
possible, and their methods were not as conserva- marketing.
tive of resources as they should be. When I visited Because the main mine area was being
Muzo in 1979 and again in 1980, the main area was stripped away so rapidly, a significant portion of
being worked harshly with bulldozers and dyna- the potential emerald production was lost to the
mite, a method not adopted in the past because of gravels of the Rio Itoco, with the result that an es-
the fragility of the emeralds. After an area has been timated 15,000 guaqueros (independent miners, di-
blasted, bulldozers scrape off the overburden until rectly translated as "treasure hunters") mine the
the white calcite veins are exposed. Then, teams riverbed each day (Figs. 3-7 and 3-8).
are brought in to work each vein with pick and Currently, the government has leased the
shovel. When emeralds are found, they are placed Muzo property to two companies, Tecminas and
in a canvas bag for sorting by the mine lessees each Coehminas, under a series of 10-year leases, and
Figure 3-8. Guaqueros at Muzo. Photo by Peter C. Keller.

Figure 3-9. View of current mining activity at Muzo. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
the situation there has improved dramatically (Fig. The Colombian Andes consist of three subpar-
3-9). The government is very concerned with the allel ranges: the Western, or Cordillera Occidental;
ecology of the area, and the new leaseholders are the Central, or Cordillera Central; and the Eastern,
doing a great deal to cooperate. Most important is or Cordillera Oriental. According to Clements
the development of underground mining at Muzo (1941), the Western and Central ranges consist pri-
to replace the wholesale strip-mining of the moun- marily of granites and are best known for their gold
tainside. The development of two major shafts and deposits and production. The Eastern range, how-
four tunnels is progressing well, with economic ever, consists mostly of sedimentary units, princi-
success for the mining companies involved. pally limestones and shales with minor igneous
and metamorphic rocks exposed only locally.
Clements places a Paleozoic age on these crystal-
line rocks.
Geology of the Muzo and Chivor
The major emerald deposits are limited to the
Emerald Districts
eastern (Chivor) and western (Muzo) margins of the
Studies of the geology of Muzo and, to a lesser Cordillera Oriental where Cretaceous sediments
extent, Chivor tell how the emeralds occur and are well exposed. The geology of the Muzo district
where to direct future exploration, but a detailed has been described well by Pogue (1916), Lleras
study of the Eastern Cordillera has thus far been (1929), Scheibe (1933), Clements (1941), and Oppen-
inhibited by the rugged terrain and thick vegeta- heim (1948), who agree that emeralds are restricted
tion that have also restricted exploration. to the Lower Cretaceous Villeta formation, a great
Figure 3-10. Emeralds at Muzo are confined to calcite veins in the carbonaceous shale.
This miner works a vein el(posed by bulldozing and blasting. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
thickness of intensely folded and fractured black ded limestones. The Cambiado is discordantly ov-
carbonaceous shale and minor limestones. The erlain by the Emerald Beds, the latter consisting of
black shale is so rich in carbon that handling it thinly bedded, weathered, yellowish gray shales
invariably soils one's hands. The Lower Cretaceous that have also been intensely folded and invaded
age of the Villeta has been determined from the by thin calcite veins. The Emerald Beds, as the
presence of fossil ammonites. The highly fractured name implies, contain localized concentrations of
shales have been invaded by numerous white cal- emeralds associated with calcite, dolomite, pyrite,
cite fracture-filling veins, and it is in these veins that quartz, and parisite. Locally, the Cambiado and
the emeralds occur (Fig. 3-10). Dolomite, quartz, Emerald Beds are separated by two thin agglom-
pyrite, and parisite, an uncommon rare earth cal- eratic layers of calcite crystals designated the Cama
cium carbonate, are accessmy minerals commonly and the overlying Cenicero (Oppenheim, 1948). The
found with emerald in these veins. LIm'as (1929), major difference between these two layers appears
Scheibe (1933), and Oppenheim (1948) noted albite to be textural. The Cama consists of an agglomerate
as a common vein mineral at Muzo, but Clements of relatively large calcite crystals, whereas the Cen-
(1941) did not observe albite, nor did I. icero, which is usually about a meter thick, consists
LIeras (1929) divided the Villeta formation into of small calcite crystals along with pyrite in a car-
two members, namely, the Cambiado and the over- bonate ground mass. Barite has also been reported
lying Emerald Beds. The lower member at Muzo, in the Cenicero (Oppenheim, 1948).
the Cambiado, consists of highly folded, faulted, The sedimentary rock units at Chivor are
and fractured carbonaceous shales and thinly bed- somewhat different lithologically from those de-
scribed for Muzo, but the geology is basically the acted as impervious dams for the rising emerald-
same. At Chivor, such units are almost entirely bearing solutions.
shales and argillites, with minor limestone and
sandstone (Rainier, 1929). The general geology and
Important Colombian Emeralds
stratigraphy of this area are not as well known as
at Muzo. The stratigraphic section at Chivor ap- Even though emeralds have been mined in Colom-
pears to consist primarily of at least 1,000 m of bia since pre-Columbian times, relatively few very
conformable sediments. Johnson (1961) provides a fine large examples are known today. Because of
good description of these sediments and the geol- the extremely high value of faceted stones, fine
ogy. Johnson indicates that the emerald zone at large emerald crystals are particularly rare.
Chivor runs about 10 km east to west and about 5 During the seventeenth century, large Colom-
km north to south. Fossil ammonites, bivalves, and bian emeralds were eagerly sought by the Mogul
ferns indicate that the sediments of the district are nobility of India. By way of Spain, a great many of
Cretaceous. As at Muzo, these sediments are heav- the early Colombian stones found a ready market
ily faulted and folded. They are mostly shales and in India through well-established trade routes. One
argillites with some blocks or floaters of carbona- particularly fine example of these emeralds is the
ceous limestone present near the top of the strati- Mogul, which is currently owned by the private
graphic section. The most prominent unit is a collector Allan Caplan. The Mogul emerald mea-
poorly cemented yellowish shale that overlies a sures 5 cm by 3.8 cm by 3.5 cm and weighs 217.8
thick sequence of gray-blue shales and argillites. carats (Caplan, 1968). The front of the stone is
No emeralds have been reported from the yellow- carved with the floral motif typical of Mogul carv-
ish shale cap; most occur in a blue-gray argillite ers; the back contains an Islamic prayer and the
about midway through the section. Johnson (1961) date 1695 A.D. The drilled stone was probably worn
suggests that the occurrence of emeralds at Chivor on an article of clothing, perhaps a turban (Fig.
is structurally related, as if the emerald veins were 3-11).
concentrated along the axes of tight folds in the Many of these Colombian emeralds were taken
argillites. He states: "If a vein is discovered traveling from India in 1739 during the sacking of Delhi by
in the trough of a syncline, the production of the Persians and became part of the crown jewels
stones may be immense." of Iran in Tehran. More than 1,000 of these emer-
Chivor emeralds are found mostly in veins, but alds were examined and it was reported that most
in rare instances they may occur in cavities, as was were over 10 carats and some exceeded 300 carats
the case with the famous Patricia emerald. The cav- (Meen and Tushingham, 1968). Certainly this col-
ities, when present, are always associated with the lection and the collection in the Topkapi Museum
veins. The veins run parallel to the bedding of the in Istanbul, Turkey, must be considered the two
sediments, which suggests that separations be- largest collections of Colombian emeralds in the
tween bedding laminae provided the avenues of world.
least resistance for fissure-filling hydrothermal so- One of the most spectacular pieces of emerald
lutions that crystallized to form veins. Such veins jewelry on public display in the United States is the
occur up to 15 cm in thickness but rarely exceed 300-year-old Spanish Inquisition necklace, which is
65 m in length. Emeralds commonly are found in the Smithsonian Institution's collection. This
where two veins intersect. Johnson (1961) divided necklace was reportedly worn in Spanish and,
the veins into three mineralogical types: pyrite, al- later, French courts. The drilled hexagonal and cy-
bite, and pyrite with albite. The mineralization is lindrical beads that make up the necklace may very
in sharp contrast to the emerald-bearing veins of well have originally belonged to articles of pre-
Muzo, where the gem material occurs in white cal- Colombian jewlery and were simply reset into this
cite, dolomite, or both. magnificent piece. A 24-mm by 15-mm drilled em-
Three more or less parallel iron bands, consist- erald bead forms the focal point of the necklace; in
ing of pyrite and limonite, appear about 50 m apart addition, 14 smaller emerald beads average 16 mm
from one another, interlaminated in the strati- by 7 mm. Dunn (1975) reports that the necklace
graphic section at Chivor. These bands appear to also contains more than 360 mine-cut diamonds,
control the distribution of emeralds to some ex- 16 of which must be considered major gems them-
tent. Emeralds are most prevalent below the lowest selves. These 16 large diamonds have also been
of the three iron bands or between the lowest and drilled.
middle bands. Very few emeralds have been re- Another spectacular Colombian emerald in the
ported above the middle or upper iron bands. This Smithsonian collection is the 75-carat square-cut
distribution suggests that these bands may have stone in the Hooker brooch, originally worn as a
Til!:' EUl!:'rald Deposits of Colombia 51
Figure 3-11. During the Spanish conquest of Colombia, many fine emeralds were sent
back to India, where Mogul nobility had them fashioned into jewelry. This 217.8-carat
emerald from the Allan Caplan collection, known as the Mogul, exhibits beautiful
craftsmanship. The floral motif on one side is typical of Mogul art; the Islamic prayer
written in Arabic on the other side includes a date equivalent to 1695 A.D. Photo by Harold
and Erica Van Pelt.
52 Hydrothennal Gem Deposits
Figure 3-12. The 75-carat Hooker emerald, once part ofa sultan's belt buckle, is
remarkably free of the inclusions normally associated with such large stones from Muzo,
Colombia. Photo by Dane Penland courtesy of the National Museum of Natural History,
Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. (NMNH #G7719).
Turkish Sultan's belt buckle. This stone is particu- examined, contained fragments of an emerald crys-
larly significant because it lacks the internal flaws tal that was probably even larger. The Patricia was
typical of large emeralds (Desautels, 1979) (Fig. donated to the American Museum of Natural His-
3-12). tory in the early 1950s.
Fine, large emerald crystals are very rare in na- Another named crystal is the famous Devon-
ture and, because of their inherent value as cut shire emerald, which was loaned to the British Mu-
stones, rarely smvive intact in the marketplace. seum of Natural History in 1936. The current
However, a few are worth noting. Reputedly, one of whereabouts of the stone are unknown; the curator
the finest Colombian emerald crystals in the world of the museum's gem collection recently verified
is not from Muzo or Chivor, but rather from the that the museum has only a wax model. In 1936,
recently discovered Gachala mine. This fine hex- the 1384-carat Devonshire emerald was the largest
agonal prism weighs 858 carats and is of unusually known emerald from the Muzo mine. Reportedly,
fine color and luster. It, too, is part of the gem the Devonshire is so named because it was given
collection at the Smithsonian Institution (Trapp, by Pedro I, Emperor of Brazil, to the sixth Duke of
1969). Devonshire sometime after 1831, when Pedro I was
Several emerald crystals have acquired names forced to leave Brazil for Europe. The simple hex-
through the years. The most famous, perhaps, is agonal prism is approximately 5 cm by 5 cm. It is
the 632-carat Patricia emerald, which was discov- pictured in Tremayne (1936).
ered in December 1920 at the Chivor mine by Justo The size and importance of the Patricia and
Daza, who received a $10 bonus for finding the Devonshire emerald crystals are somewhat over-
crystal. The Patricia is the largest known emerald shadowed by the collection of unnamed crystals
from Chivor and was sold early in 1921 for $60,000. housed in the basement vaults of the Banco de la
According to Johnson (1961), the blast that uncov- Republica in Bogota. This collection consists of five
ered the Patricia destroyed a pocket that, when crystals ranging in size from 220 carats to 1795.88
Figure 3-13. The finest specimen in the collection of the Banco de la Republica is this
e}(ceptionaI1,759-carat crystalfrom Muzo, Colombia. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
carats. The finest is an extraordinary 1759-carat (near Gachala), it is owned by a private mining con-
crystal with excellent color and crystal form (Fig. cern. It has been displayed at expositions around
3-13). All of the crystals are reportedly from Muzo the world, although its current whereabouts are
and were probably found between 1947 and 1969, unknown.
when the bank controlled the mines, although Many fine emeralds from the colonial period of
their history is not well documented. These crys- Colombia's history are found in its church trea-
tals are not on public display in Colombia. sures. The finest of these treasures, now on display
The largest known single emerald crystal from in the Museo del Oro in Bogota, is the Custodia de
Colombia is the 7025-carat Emilia crystal discov- San Ignacio or La Lechuga. This magnificent piece
ered in 1969. Reportedly from the Las Cruces mine contains over 1,480 emeralds (Fig. 3-14).
Figure 3-14. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, wealthy landowners in Colombia
paid their respects to the Roman Catholic Church by commissioning incredible altar
pieces fashioned from gold and studded with emeralds and other precious stones. Today,
one of the most extraordinary church treasures remaining in Colombia is this Custodia de
San Ignacio or "La Lechuga," which consists of approximately 8.5 kg of gold and more
than 1,480 emeralds. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
REFERENCES Klein, I. 1941. Smaragde unter dem Urwald. Oswald Ar-

nold, Berlin. 285 pages.
Lleras, C. R. 1929. Minas de esmeraldas. Boletin de Minas
Anderton, R. W. 1950. Report on Chivor emerald mine.
y Petroleos 1(1).
Gems & Gemology 6:276-277.
Louderback, G. E. 1907. Benitoite, a new California gem
Anderton, R. W. 1955. The new Gachala emerald mine in
mineral. Bulletin of the Dept. of Geology, Univ. of Cal-
Colombia. Gems & Gemology 8:195-196.
ifornia 5(9J.
Anderton, R. 1965. The present status of Colombian em-
MacFadden, C. R. 1934. Emerald mining in Colombia.
erald mining. Lapidary Journal 19:374-377.
Ball, S. H. 1931. Historical notes on gem mining. Econ.
Meen, V. B., and A. D. Tushingham. 1968. Crown Jewels of
Geol. 26:681-738.
Iran. University of Toronto Press, Toronto.
Bancroft, P. 1971. The lure of Chivor. Lapidary Journal,
Olsen, D. R. 1971. Origin of topaz deposits near Ouro
15:128-131.
Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Econ. Geol. 66(4):627-631.
Barriga Villalba, A. M., and A. M. Barriga del Diestro. 1973.
Oppenheim, V. 1948. The Muzo emerald zone, Colombia,
La esmeralda de Colombia. Colegio Mayor de Nues-
SA. Econ. Geol. 43:31-38.
tra Senora del Rosario, Bogota.
Pogue, J. 1916. The emerald deposits of Muzo, Colombia.
Bowersox, G. W. 1985. A status report on gemstones from
Transactions of the American Institute of Mining and
Afghanistan. Gems & Gemology 21(4):192-204.
Metallurgical Engineers 55:810-834.
Bray, W. 1978. The Gold ofEI Dorado. London Times, Ltd.,
Rainier, P. W. 1929. The Chivor-Somondoco emerald
London.
mines of Colombia. Technical Publication 258. Amer-
Caplan, A. 1968. An important carved emerald from the
ican Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers,
Mogul period of India. Lapidary Journal 22:1336-
New York.
1337.
Rainier, P. W. 1942. Green Fire. Random House, New York.
Clements, T. 1941. The emerald mines of Muzo, Colom-
Ringsrud, R. 1986. The Coscuez mine: a major source of
bia. Gems & Gemology 3:130-133.
Colombian emeralds. Gems & Gemology 22:67-79.
Colombian American Business. 1979. Colombian emer-
Scalisi, P., and D. Cook. 1983. Classic Mineral Localities of
alds: The little green stone questions. Colombian
the World: Asia and Australia. Van Nostrand Rein-
American Business 18:3-5.
hold, New York, 226 pages.
Copeland, L. L. 1950. Emerald mine report from Colom-
Scheibe, R. 1933. Informe geologico sobre la mina de es-
bia. Gems & Gemology 6:316.
meraldas de Muzo. Compilacion de los Estudios
Desautels, P. E. 1979. The Gem Collection. Smithsonian
Geologicos Oficiales en Colombia 1:169-198.
Institution Press, Washington, D.C.
Sinkankas, J. 1981. Emerald and other Bryls. Chilton Book
Dominguez, A. R. A. 1965. Historia de las esmeraldas de
Company, Radnor, Pa. 665 pages.
Colombia. Impreso en Graficos Ducal, Bogota. 297
Switzer, G. 1948. Recent emerald mine, Colombia. Gems
pages.
& Gemology 6:25-26.
Dunn, P. 1975. Emeralds in the Smithsonian gem collec-
Tenhagen, J. W. 1972. Muzo emerald mine, Colombia.
tion. Lapidary Journal 29:1572-1575.
Feininger, T. 1970. Emerald mining in Colombia: History
Trapp, F. W. 1969. The GachalA emerald shares the spot-
and geology. Mineralogical Record 1:142-149.
light with the Hope diamond at the Smithsonian.
Johnson, P. W. 1961. The Chivor emerald mine. Journal
Lapidary Journal 23:628.
of Gemology 8:126-152.
Tremayne, A. 1936. The Devonshire emerald in Natural
Keller, P. C. 1981. Emeralds of Colombia. Gems & Gem-
History Museum. Gemmologist 6:98-99.
ology 17(2) :80-92.
Wokittel, R. 1960. Esmeralda Colombia Instituto Geolo-
Keller, P. C. 1983. The Capao Topaz deposit, Ouro Preto,
gico Nacional, Seccion de Geologia Economica.
Minas Gerais, Brazil. Gems & Gemology 19(1):12-20.
4
Gemstones Formed
in Pegmatites:
Gelll Peglllatites of Minas Gerais,
Brazil
Of all the rock types encountered on Earth, none is mon are identical to that of granite and are there-
more gemologically important for its variety and fore known as granitic pegmatites. These granitic
quantity of gemstones than the igneous bodies pegmatites are made up mostly of quartz, potas-
known as pegmatites. More gemstones are found sium-feldspar, and muscovite mica. Except for
in pegmatites than in any other type of deposit. some rare instances of corundum-bearing pegma-
Pegmatites yield huge quantities of tourmaline, tites in Tanzania (Solesbury, 1967) and Kashmir (At-
beryl (aquamarine and morganite), chrysoberyl, kinson and Kothavala, 1983; Middlemiss, 1931), all
kunzite, and topaz, as well as a host of much rarer gem-bearing pegmatites are granitic. The rare co-
gems and minerals. Important descriptions of peg- rundum-bearing pegmatites appear to be quartz
matites are found in Sinkankas (1981) and Schnei- poor, consisting principally of acid feldspars. The
derhohn (1961). formation of these unusual pegmatites is still un-
According to Shigley and Kampf (1984), the clear, but one theory is that they were granitic peg-
term pegmatite was coined in the early 1800s by matites that were stripped of silica by the
the French mineralogist Hauy to describe the geo- surrounding rocks, which allowed for the forma-
metric intergrowth of feldspar, quartz, and mica tion of corundum.
that petrologists today call graphic granite. Gen- Gem minerals are the result of the incorpora-
erally speaking, a pegmatite is a dikelike body of tion into the pegmatite of rare elements that are
once molten rock that characteristically contains unable to fit into the crystal structure of the quartz,
very large crystals and may contain rare minerals. feldspar, and mica that make up the bulk of the
Compositionally, a wide variety of rock types may pegmatite. These rare elements include beryllium,
be considered pegmatitic, but by far the most com- lithium, boron, manganese, phosphorous, and flu-
57
58 Gemstones Fonned in Pegmatites
mine. Texturally, these crystals are highly variable 2. Those found at depths between 7 and 11 km,
in size and much larger than their enclosing rock. which may be zoned but are still of basic com-
The pegmatite minerals usually increase in size position.
from the outer chill margins, which may be mea- 3. Those formed at depths between 3.5 and 7 km,
sured in millimeters, to the interior core in which which may be zoned and contain rare minerals
crystals up to many meters long may be found and pockets of small crystals.
(Cameron et al., 1949). According to Jahns (1953), 4. Those formed at depths less than 3.5 km, which
logs of beryl and spodumene up to 15 meters long are zoned and may contain larger crystals and
have been found in the Etta and Keystone pegma- pockets of rare minerals, including gemstones.
tites in the Black Hills of South Dakota (Page et al.,
Based on this method of classification, the pegma-
1953). Similar occurrences have been noted in the
tites that formed at relatively shallow depths below
Ural Mountains of the Soviet Union, and the fa-
the earth's surface are those of gemological impor-
mous Harding pegmatite in Taos County, New
tance. These pegmatites are usually associated
Mexico. Gem crystals are much smaller, but crys-
with intrusive granitic batholiths that regionally
tals of topaz, aquamarine, and tourmaline weigh-
make up the cores of mountains or, if exposed,
ing many tens of kilograms have been recovered in
rounded, rolling topography. The shallow, zoned
Minas Gerais, Brazil. One of the most famous aqua-
pegmatites are usually sheetlike in shape and fill
marine crystals is a 110.5-kg crystal discovered in
fractures in the preexisting rock that surrounds
1910 at the Papamal mine. In 1954 a 34.7-kg aqua-
them.
marine prism was found near Topazio. In 1978 an
The granitic pegmatites' usually high concen-
incredible pocket of rubellite was recovered in the
tration of rare and gem minerals is a function of its
Itatiaia (Jonas) mine; among its many record-size
very unusual mode of formation. Geologists have
crystals was the 135-kg rocket.
argued over how pegmatites formed for many years
Heinrich (1956) classified pegmatites into three
but today agree that the zoned and complex peg-
types based on their internal structure:
matites have formed from a granitic magma at shal-
1. Simple pegmatites that consist only of quartz, low depths. The classic work on the origin of
feldspar, and mica and exhibit no internal struc- pegmatites is that of Fersman (1931), whose model
ture. This is the most common class. has been refined by Jahns (1953, 1955) and Jahns
2. Zoned pegmatites that consist of not only and Burnham (1969). A remarkable series of events
quartz, feldspar, and mica but also a variety of leads up to the concentration of rare elements and
accessory minerals. These minerals exhibit dis- subsequent formation of gemstones in pegmatites.
tinct zoning with crystal size increasing toward During the final stages of crystallization of a grani-
the pegmatite's center or core. The zones ideally tic magma, magma rich in rare elements and vola-
are reflected as concentric layers around a very tiles flows up from the large, partially solid magma
coarse-grained core. These zones or layers in- and is injected into fractures in the preexisting
clude the border, wall, intermediate, and core rocks (Fig. 4-1). Water is the most important of the
zones. Gemstones may be present in the core or volatiles. The rare elements include beryllium, lith-
intermediate zones. ium, boron, phosphorous, fluorine, and cesium. As
3. Complex pegmatites that are very similar to the pegmatitic fluids cool, quartz, feldspar, and
zoned pegmatites but have undergone extensive mica crystallize along the outer edge next to the
alteration. Often they contain an extensive array wall rock to form a relatively fine-grained border
of rare minerals, including gemstones that may and wall zones. The border zone acts as an insu-
form in irregular openings or pockets, which lator against heat loss and allows the rest of the
may vary greatly in size up to several meters. pegmatitic fluids to cool more slowly and form
Pockets are found in the central core or at the larger crystals. As a result, the wall and intermedi-
edge of the core and the intermediate zone. ate zones, which form next, are made up of larger
crystals of quartz, potassium-rich feldspars, and
More recently, geologists have attempted to re-
mica, along with some rarer minerals such as beryl
classify pegmatites based on the depth that they
and spodumene. The remaining fluids are now
formed below the surface (Ginzburg et al., 1979;
highly enriched with the rare elements that have
Cerny, 1982). Four classes of pegmatites have been
not fit into the crystal structure of the common
recognized:
quartz, feldspar, and mica. The granitic magma is
1. Those formed at depths greater than 11 km, now almost totally crystallized, leaving behind only
which tend to be unzoned and consist of only trapped pockets of fluids rich in rare elements.
quartz, feldspar, and mica. With continued cooling, these pockets begin to
Gem Pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil 59
erside Counties of California (Jahns and Wright,

1951; Jahns, 1954, 1979); the Alto-Ligonha area,
Mozambique (Hutchinson and Claus, 1956; Neiva
and Neves, 1960); the Kleine Spitzkopje and other
pegmatites in Namibia; Madagascar (Murdock,
1963); the Ural Mountains, Ukraine, and the Chita
area of the Soviet Union (Sinkankas, 1981); and,
most recently, Jos, Nigeria, and the Nuistan area of
Afghanistan (Hariand and Poullen, 1978; Bowersox,
1985). Significant gem-bearing pegmatites occur in
the states of Rio Grande do Norte, Bahia, Goias, and
Espirito Santo, Brazil. Many of these have only re-
cently been exploited.
PEGMATITES OF MINAS
GERAIS, BRAZIL
The world's most important gemstone-producing

pegmatites are in the northeastern portion of the
state of Minas Gerais, Brazil (Fig. 4-2). The most
comprehensive overviews of these deposits are
found in Sinkankas (1981) and in a series of articles
by Proctor (1984, 1985a, 1985b). In this huge peg-
matite district, perhaps more gem tourmaline,
....,.
_.a ...... GItI/llillt
.-.....
.'I•
* 10 kn .....
••
eu....
....".. .. S*Iu .0
.u~f'"
~.,~
O\loM1O e.r.~--.
"* eoneec5all'O
PnIO 10 a. -, ~
. 1OL$MI,.ruc.-Ofhp
.c erv8llO ~
err f.u.-OOf..wl
• rt. fartMat. . ... ~. .
_PI
(I' ......... ·b!1.1
~,.Ao.. ...... . •
........
•, f' ....QooroMIWUrtll . t TOCooI " ar.c.
-0 (l,oIc.ofId.I · uc u.WOUo'I'I
: :~ : ~~=-
:t. ~,..:-.~
-,,'It ..-
... ",,",,,
~~~~
.,
-
-
oWIWIUiIII'INIII"ubolCa
· ,.c ....CJIIIo-c;:.....
...
• MfII ...... Roc ....
* IIJI.. ,..111, •
_ tao t.IINoiJtlltlool
. WI"4OI1O~
. ..... ~".1W\IItdII
o.tw>"lI"!O·l
.,
. Of
' 111"~
.... okt«I·
o
l
Figure 4-1. Digram showing pegmatite formation.
Courtesy of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
County.
crystallize as quartz, feldspar, rare minerals, and

gem crystals such as tourmaline, topaz, kunzite,
morganite, and aquamarine. These crystals are typ-
ically found projecting into the center of the
pocket.
Granitic pegmatites are extremely numerous
worldwide, but only a small percentage are gem
bearing. The most important gem-bearing pegma- Figure 4-2. Gem pegmatite mines of Minas Gerais,
titic districts are found in the San Diego and Riv- Brazil. (Proctor, 1984). Courtesy of the Gemological
Institute ofAmerica.
60 Gemstones Formed in Pegmatites
Figure 4-3. The pegmatites

of Brazil have produced an
extraordinary array of
gemstones, including
tourmaline, topaz, kunzite,
aquamarine, and morganite.
This collection of Brazilian
gems is part of the
Trelawney collection of the
Natural History Museum of
Los Angeles County. Photo
by Harold and Erica Van
Pelt.
topaz, kunzite, morganite, aquamarine, and chry- The gem trade was largely limited to the German
soberyl have been recovered in this century than market until World War II. With World War II, com-
from the rest of the pegmatites in the world commercial interest in pegmatites shifted to the great
bined (Fig. 4-3). In 1676 the Portuguese explorer need for strategic pegmatite minerals such as
Femao Dias Paes Leme discovered the first gem- quartz, lithium minerals, and mica. Geologists
bearing pegmatites near what is today called the scoured the Brazilian countryside in search of
Cruzeiro mine. This discovery went largely unno- these badly needed strategic materials, and the dis-
ticed due to a lack of appreciation for pegmatite covery of widespread gem deposits was a by-prod-
gemstones in the European market of the time. In uct that was not appreciated until after the war
the latter half of the nineteenth century, large num- (Pecora et al., 1950a,b) . With peace, commercial in-
bers of German and Lebanese immigrants migrat- terests shifted back to the gemstones, this time on
ing to the pegmatite region of Minas Gerais a much greater scale.
discovered the pegmatitic gems. They soon estab- Since World War II, the former mica-producing
lished a close trading relationship with the famous centers of Govemador Valadares and Te6filo Otoni
gem-cutting center at Idar-Oberstein, Germany. have become the gem mining centers of today. The
capital of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, is a major

cutting and marketing center. Currently, the most
important gem pegmatite districts are the Cruz-
eiro, Golconda, and Virgem da Lapa.
Geology of the Minas Gerais Pegmatite Belt

Rough terrain, difficult access, and, most impor-
tantly, deep chemical weathering have hampered
detailed studies of the regional geology of Minas
Gerais. All rocks in the region have been intensely
weathered, most to a depth of 30 meters or more,
producing thick lateritic soil horizons that typically
shroud the underlying rocks of Minas Gerais (Fig.
4-4). Regional correlation of rock units has been
particularly difficult. As a result, very little geologic
work on a broad scale has been done. Only recently
has a geologic map of the state been published (Da
Costa and Romano, 1976).
Of the geologic work on the pegmatite region
of Minas Gerais undertaken during World War II,
one of the most important efforts, the result of sev-
eral years of regional mapping, was published by
Pecora and associates (1950a). Their work revealed
a Precambrian basement complex, which was des-
ignated the Complexo Fundamental. They as-
signed a tremendous variety of rock types to this
unit, including biotite schists interlayered with am-
phibolite schists and quartzites, banded and gran-
itoid gneisses, and biotite-garnet schists, and
observed that the gem-bearing (mica) pegmatites
are found principally in areas that are underlain Figure 4-4. A garimpeiro works a pocket at the Salinas
by the Complexo Fundamental. mine after gem material was spotted when the bulldozer
The Complexo Fundamental is unconformably made its most recent pass. On the right wall, the sharp
contact between the kaolin of the pegmatite and the red
overlain by a series of Precambrian metasediments
lateritic soil that covers it is evident. Photo by Keith
designated the Minas series. The Minas series con- Proctor, 1985.
sists mostly of a sericitic phyllite. These rocks were
later intruded by granitic batholiths that metamor-
phosed, domed, and fractured the sediments to
provide channels for the pegmatitic fluids that ac- that the approximate age of the gem-bearing peg-
companied the magmas of subsequent intrusive matites is 490 million years. During this time, peg-
activity. matitic fluids and granitic magmas domed and
The Minas series is overlain by the much fractured the overlying rocks and invaded the
folded and faulted Itacolomy series of predomi- newly created passageways. With time, these fluids
nantly phyllites and quartzites of late Precambrian cooled and crystallized to form dikes in the older
age. The Itacolomy series has also been intruded metamorphic rocks. Subsequent intense weather-
by pegmatites, suggesting that pegmatite-related ing and rapid erosion exposed and destroyed
magmatic activity continued for some time follow- many of the pegmatites and left the more durable
ing the deposition of this unit. The conglomerates, minerals, including gemstones, to be concentrated
phyllites, and sandstones of the overlying early Pa- in drainage basins as alluvial deposits. The great
leozoic Lavas and Silurian age Baubue series do not granitic batholiths have been exhumed and create
contain pegmatites, and, therefore, areas underlain a landscape of rounded mountains called insel-
by these younger units are of no commercial in- bergs ("island mountains"), the most famous of
terest. which is Sugarloaf in Rio de Janeiro.
The pegmatites have been more accurately Today, thousands of gem-bearing pegmatites
dated by pirac and Ebert (1967). They determined in varying degrees of alteration are known in Minas
Figure 4-5. The entire village of Cruzeiro (note the cross Figure 4-6. Open-pit mining at the top of the Cruzeiro
in the foreground, from which both the village and the mine. Note the two tunnels that follow the vein
mine get their name) is pictured here, isolated along this underground into the quartzite wall. Photo by Peter C.
ridge of the Serra Safira. Photo by Peter C. Keller. Keller.
Gerais. Many of these pegmatites have been stud- ladares. One of the oldest mica producers in Brazil,
ied individually, and the literature is rich with their it began production in 1908 (Pecora et al., 1950b)
descriptions. The most important and best known and supplied mica for both world wars.
of these are the Cruzeiro, Golconda, Virgem da According to Pecora et al. (1950b), the Golconda
Lapa, and Itatiaia (Jonas) pegmatites. pegmatite is a nearly horizontal sheetlike body
The Cruzeiro mine is one of the largest and ranging from 3 to 11 meters in thickness. It has
most consistent producers of fine green tourma- intruded a mica schist that probably belongs to the
line in the world. It is located about 80 km north- Complexo Fundamental and is also a classic ex-
west of Govemador Valadares, on the eastern slope ample of a complex granitic pegmatite with dis-
of the Serra Safira, a major north-south mountain tinct zoning. Gem pockets are common in the core
range dividing the Rio Suacui Grande and its trib- zone and contain tantalite, albite, cassiterite, mi-
utary, the Rio Urupuca. Cruzeiro was a major pro- crolite, cookeite, and muscovite, along with tour-
ducer of mica in both world wars, including about maline, garnet, and beryl.
12 percent of Brazil's mica production during Current mining in the Golconda district is
World War II (Cassedanne and Sauer, 1980), heavily mechanized, and extensive underground
Cruzeiro (Fig. 4-5) consists of three pegmatite workings are being developed, with fresh memo-
bodies that strike N20"W in a white to pinkish me- ries of past glory (Fig. 4-8). According to Proctor
dium-grained quartzite belonging to the Complexo (1985b), the Golconda III mine has produced "lit-
Fundamental (Fig. 4-6). The pegmatites are all ex- erally millions of carats of fine blue-green, green,
cellent examples of the complex zoned pegmatites and rose-colored tourmaline, between 1961 and
described by Shigley and Kampf (1984), Since 1967."
World War II, the Cruzeiro mine is most famous for The Virgem da Lapa pegmatite district, located
its production of emerald green tourmaline and approximately 34 km west-northwest of Ara<;uai, is
fine blue indicolite, including world-famous speci- one of the most famous of Brazil's pegmatites to
mens such as the approximately 35-cm-high green the mineral collector (Proctor, 1985a). In the 1970s,
tourmaline on quartz belonging to the Natural His- Virgem da Lapa produced extraordinary amounts
tory Museum of Los Angeles County (Fig. 4-7). This of tourmaline, aquamarine, and blue topaz crystals,
specimen is probably from a pocket discovered in which were ranked as some of the world's finest
1968 that produced approximately 2,000 kilograms (Cassedanne and Lowell, 1982) (Fig. 4-9). The dis-
of opaque but very aesthetic crystals (Proctor, trict consists of a group of mines working a series
1985b). of nearly horizontal tabular or lens-shaped com-
The Golconda district consists of three mines, plex granitic pegmatites. The Virgem da Lapa peg-
designated Golconda I, II, and III, which have pro- matites are especially noteworthy for their
duced an abundance of fine green and bicolored relatively unaltered condition, which possibly ex-
pink-and-green tourmalines. The district is located plains the high quality of the mineral specimens
approximately 34 km northwest of Governador Va- they yield.
Figure 4-7. One of the finest tourmaline specimens ever producedfrom the Cruzeiro
mine is this approl'-imately 40-cm-high green tourmaline on quartz. This el'-ceptional
specimen is from the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Photo by Harold
and Erica Van Pelt.
Figure 4-8. The Golconda

tourmaline mine, Minas
Gerais, Brazil, is one of
Brazil's most mechanized.
Here, bulldozers are used
to move the overburden and
waste from the mine
entrance. Photo by Keith
Proctor (1984).
Figure 4-9. This unusually

fine, 21-cm-high blue topaz
crystal, with a coating of
lepidolite, is from the
Virgem da Lapa area of
Minas Gerais, Brazil. It is
part of the Smithsonian
Institution's collection.
Photo by Harold and Erica
Van Pelt.
Figure 4-10. Gem tourmaline crystal from the Jonas mine in Minas Gerais, Brazil. This
superb specimen is known as the "Rose of Ita tia ia " and is in the collection ofK. Proctor.
Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Another pegmatite that is particularly familiar artist's re-creation of what it must have looked like.
to the mineral collector is the Itatiaia or Jonas The Itatiaia pegmatite is located just southeast of
mine. In 1978 this relatively unaltered pegmatite Govemador Valadares. The nearly vertical pegma-
yielded a pocket containing hundreds of kilograms tite is about 200 meters long and 23 meters wide
of fine cranberry red tourmalines, some of extraor- and extends from depth to the surface. It is typi-
dinary size (Fig. 4-10). Proctor (1985b) provides a cally zoned but noteworthy for its abundance of
superb description of this pocket, along with an black schorl crystals.
Mining Techniques working wherever they believe gems may be pres-

ent. According to Proctor (1984), the garimpeiro
Garimpeiros, or independent miners, are the back-
force is dwindling as those workers go to work in
bone of the gem-mining industry in Minas Gerais
more productive and steady employment.
(Fig. 4-11). A few more sophisticated mining oper-
ations utilize relatively up-to-date equipment such
Noteworthy Brazilian Pegmatite Gems
as jackhammers, compressors, and bulldozers, but
most mining is done with the tools of the garim- Because pegmatites are known for their abundance
peiros, picks, shovels, and carbide lamps. The gar- of extraordinarily large crystals, that they have pro-
impeiros work as individuals or in small groups, vided the world's museums with some of their
usually digging into the soft, deeply kaolinized largest crystals and faceted gemstones is not
pegmatites. surprising (Figs. 4-12 through 4-15). Brazilian gem-
According to Proctor (1984), federal law dic- stones larger than a thousand carats are not un-
tates that all the gem deposits belong to the gov- usual. The gem collection of the Smithsonian
ernment and any licensed garimpeiro may work on Institution includes a 2,054-carat greenish gold
any state-owned land or private lands, assuming beryl, a l,363-carat green beryl, a l,OOO-carat aqua-
consent of the owner. The garimpeiro must pay marine, and a 911-carat aquamarine. Their mor-
between 10 and 50 percent royalty to the land- ganites or pink-orange beryls are somewhat
owner. These garimpeiros are generally migratory, smaller at 330 and 235.5 carats. The Smithsonian
Figure 4-11. The garimpeiro is the independent miner Figure 4-12. Gem aquamarine crystalfrom Minas Gerais,
making up the backbone of Brazil's gem-mining industry. Brazil. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Gpm Ppgmatites of Minas Gpmis, Bmzil 67
also has an 880-carat kunzite, and the Royal On-

tario Museum possesses an 1,800-carat greenish
yellow spodumene.
One of the most famous Brazilian gemstones is
an 1,847-carat aquamarine that was presented to
President Franklin D. Roosevelt by the Brazilian
government. This extraordinary aquamarine, pos-
sibly the world's largest, is now housed in the Roo-
sevelt Museum in Hyde Park, New York.
The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
County also has several important faceted Brazilian
gemstones. Among the most notable are a 638-carat
aquamarine, a 46l.4-carat morganite, a 286-carat
green beryl, and a 211.5-carat cat's-eye golden
beryl. It also has what is perhaps the world's larg-
est kunzite, a 1,267-carat stone found in the 1960s.
Recently, very large blue topazes have been
faceted that overshadow anything previously re-
corded for size in Brazilian gemstones. The Natural
History Museum of Los Angeles County's 5,350-
carat stone, once a record weight, appears insig-
nificant in size next to the American Museum of
Natural History's 2l,005-carat "Brazilian Princess"
Figure 4-13. Rough and cut indicolite tourmaline from and the 22,892-carat yellow topaz in the Smithson-
Minas Gerais, Brazil. From the W. Larson collection. ian collection.
Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Figure 4-14. Gem kunzite crystal from Minas Gerais, Brazil. Photo by Harold and Erica
Van Pelt.
Figure 4-15. This el'traordinary necklace from the A. Blythe collection el'hibits the best
variety of colors that tourmaline may possess. While much of the world's finest
tourmaline is from the pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil, other fine tourmalines may be
found in parts ofAfrica, southern California, and Afghanistan. Photo by Harold and Erica
Van Pelt.
Gem Pegmatites of MiIlllS Gerais, Brazil 69
REFERENCES County, 1-38. In P. L. Abbott and V. R. Todd, eds.,

Mesozoic Crystalline Rocks: Peninsular Ranges Bath-
olith and Pegmatites, Point Sal Ophiolite. Depart-
Atkinson, D., and R. Z. Kothavala. 1983. Kashmir sapphire. ment of Geological Sciences, San Diego State
Gems & Gemology 19(2):64-76. University, San Diego.
Bariand, P., and J. F. Poullen. 1978. The pegmatites of Jahns, R. H., and C. W. Burnham. 1969. Experimental
Laghman, Nuristan, Afghanistan. Mineralogical Rec- studies of pegmatite genesis. I. A model for the der-
ord 9(5):301-308. ivation and crystallization of granitic pegmatites.
Bowersox, G. W. 1985. A status report on gemstones from Econ. Geol. 64:843-864.
Afghanistan. Gems & Gemology 21(4):192-204. Jahns, R. H., and L. A. Wright. 1951. Gem- and Lithium-
Cameron, E. N., R. H. Jahns, A. M. McNair, and L. R. Page. Bearing Pegmatites of the Pala District, San Diego
1949. Internal Structure of Granitic Pegmatites. Mon- County, California. California Div. Mines Spec. Rept.
ograph 2. Economic Geology, Urbana, Ill. 7-A, Sacramento, 72 pages.
Cassedanne, J. P., and J. Lowell. 1982. Famous mineral Middlemiss, C. S. 1931. Precious and Semi-Precious Gem-
localities: The Virgem da Lapa pegmatites. Mineral- stones ofJammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir
ogical Record 18(1):19-28. Mineral Survey Reports 9, Jammu. 58 pages.
Cassedanne, J. P., and D. A. Sauer. 1980. Famous mineral Murdock, T. G. 1963. Mineral Resources of the Malagasy
localities: The Cruzeiro mine past and present. Min- Republic. U.S. Bureau of Mines Information Circular
eralogical Record 11(6):363-370. 8196. 147 pages.
Cerny, P., ed. 1982. Granitic Pegmatites in Science and Neiva, J., and J. Neves. 1960. Pegmatites of Alto-Ligonha,
Industry. Short Course Handbook 8. Mineralogical Mozambique. Int. Geol. Congo Proc. (21st, Copen-
Association of Canada, Winnipeg. hagen) 17:53-62.
Da Costa, M. T., and A. Romano. 1976. Mapa geologico do Page, L. R., J. W. Adams, M. P. Erickson, W. E. Hall, J. B.
Estado de Minas Gerais. Secr. Plan. & Coord. geral. Hanley, P. Joralemon, J. J. Norton, L. C. Pray, T. A.
Inst. Geoc. apl., Belo Horizonte. Steven, W. C. Stoll, and R. F. Stopper. 1953. Pegmatite
Dirac, F., and H. Ebert. 1967. Isotopic age from the peg- Investigations, 1942-1945, Black Hills, South Dakota.
matite provinces of Eastern Brazil. Nature 215:948- USGS Prof. Paper 247, Washington, D.C.
949. Pecora, W. T., M. R. Klepper, and D. M. Larrabec. 1950a.
Fersman, A. E. 1931. Les Pegmatites, leur Importance Mica Deposits in Minas Gerais, Brazil. USGS Bull.
Scientifique et Practique. Akademiya Nauk, SSSR, 964-c., Washington, D.C., 305 pages.
Leningrad. (Translated from Russian into French Pecora, W. T., G. Switzer, A. L. de My Barbosa, and -A. T.
under the direction of R. du Trieu de Terdonck and Myers, 1950b. Structure and mineralogy of the Col-
J. Thoreau, Universite de Louvain, Louvain, Belgium, conda peginatite, Minas Gerais, Brazil. American
1952.) Mineralogist 35 (9/10):889-901.
Ginzburg, A. I., I. N. Timofeyev, and L. G. Feldman. 1979. Proctor, K. 1984. Gem pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil:
Principles of Geology of Granitic Pegmatites (in Rus- Exploration, occurrence and aquamarine deposits.
sia). Nedra, Moscow. (Summarized in Cerny, 1982). Gems & Gemology 20(2):78-100.
Heinrich, E. W. 1956. Radioactive pegmatite deposits: Proctor, K. 1985. Gem pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil:
How to know them. Canadian Mining Journal The tourmalines of the Aracual districts. Gems &
77(4):69-72, 100. Gemology 2(1):3-19.
Hutchinson, R. W., and R. J. Claus. 1956. Pegmatite de- Proctor, K. 1985b. Gem pegmatites of Minas Gerais, Brazil:
posits, Alto, Ugauha, Portuguese East Africa. Econ. The tourmaline of the GovernadorValadares District.
Geol. 51:757-780. Gems & Gemology 21(2):86-104.
Jahns, R. H. 1953. The genesis of pegmatites. I. Occur- Schneiderhohn, H. 1961. Die Erzlagerstatten der Erde,
rence and origin of giant crystals. American Miner- vol. 2. Die Pegmatite. Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart.
alogist 38:563-598. 720 pages.
Jahns, R. H. 1954. Pegmatites of Southern California. Cal- Shigley, J. E., and A. R. Kampf. 1984. Gem-bearing peg-
ifornia Div. Mines and Geology Bull. 170 (C7-P5):37- matites: A review. Gems & Gemology 20(2): 64-77.
50. Sinkankas, J. 1981. Emeralds and Other Beryls. Chilton
Jahns, R. H. 1955. The study of pegmatites. Econ. Geol. Book Company, Radnor, Pa. 665 pages.
50:1025-1130. Solesbury, F. W. 1967. Gem Corundum Pegmatites in N.E.
Jahns, R. H. 1979. Gem-bearing pegmatites in San Diego Tanganyika. Econ. Geol. 62:983-991.
5
Gemstones Formed Directly
from Molten Rock:
The Ruby Deposits of
Chanthaburi-Trat, Thailand
Molten lava erupting from fissures or volcanoes on temperature rhyolitic lavas. Moonstone is found in
the earth's surface may be a source for gemstones. all of these environments, although rarely in sizes
These hot lavas may contain gems in one of three and qualities suitable for use as a gemstone.
ways: (1) Gemstones such as moonstone may be an Sri Lanka is by far the most important source
essential constituent of the lava and crystallize as of moonstone. In Sri Lanka, the moonstone occurs
such as the lava cools; (2) in the final stages of in feldspar-rich dikes near Ambalangoda in the
cooling, when much of the magma has solidified, Southern Province and in the Kandy district in the
minerals such as topaz may crystallize in litho- Central Province. Characteristically reddish brown
physal (gas) cavities formed in the cooling lava; and moonstone occurs in the Coimbatore district of
(3) the lava may simply act as the vehicle that trans- Madras, India (Webster, 1975).
ports materials that crystallized at great depth to Moonstone is also found in numerous locali-
the surface. Such is the case with many alkali- ties in the United States. It is generally believed that
olivine basalts, which may bring peridot, zircon, the finest are found in the interior of large, chalky
sapphire, or ruby up from 100-km depths (Fig. 5-11. white crystals associated in granitic dikes on the
Moonstone is a variety of the potassium-rich west slope of the Black Range in Grant County,
feldspar, orthoclase, and its high-temperature New Mexico (Sinkankas, 1959).
polymorph, sanidine. It is distinguished by its dis- Topaz is typically found in gem-bearing grani-
play of a silver-blue sheen known as adulerescence. tic pegmatites, in hydrothermal veins, and in litho-
Orthoclase is a common constituent of granitic physal cavities in rhyolite. Topaz as a late-stage
pegmatites, and sanidine is common in the higher- lithophysal cavity filling is best known from the
71
72 Gemstones Formed Directly from Molten Rock
topaz-bearing rhyolites in the southern end of the

Thomas Mountains in Juab County, Utah (Sinkan-
kas, 1959).
A similar topaz occurrence is found in San Luis
PotosI, Mexico. Unfortunately, these topaz crystals
as well as the similar ones from Utah tend to fade
to colorlessness when exposed to light for pro-
longed periods of time.
Rare, red beryl has recently been commercially
produced from similar lithophysal cavities in
rhyolite in the Wah Wah mountains of southwest-
ern Utah. These unique beryls are believed to have
formed from a gas or vapor phase given off by a
rhyolitic magma as it was cooling (Shigley and
Foord, 1984), and the intense red color of these
unique beryls seems to be caused by trace
amounts of manganese.
From a gemologist's point of view, the mate-
rials brought up as passengers in the voluminous
alkali basalts found around the world are the most
interesting. These basalts, sometimes known as
flood basalts because they appear to be so wide-
spread, may bring with them nodules containing
zircon, ruby, and/or sapphire or volcanic "bombs"
of olivine (peridot) that are thought to represent
broken fragments of the Earth's upper mantle.
One of the best examples of an upper mantle
material, olivine (peridot), being transported tens
of kilometers to the earth's surface is an alkali ba-
salt found on Peridot Mesa near San Carlos, Ari-
zona. Here, elliptical to angular bombs of olivine
(peridot) up to 20 cm in diameter make up 25 to 40
percent of the rock volume (Broomfield and Shride,
1956; Holloway and Cross, 1978; Vuich and Moore,
1977). The roughly 3-square-km Mesa itself is
capped by the basalt, which is 10 to 100 feet thick
and was believed to have been erupted from a vol-
canic core that occupies the southwest corner of
Peridot Mesa. The olivine bombs are mostly gran-
ular, but contain irregular fragments of peridot up
to 2 cm in diameter. These fragments are mined by
the local Apache Indians and currently represent
a very high percentage of the peridot supplied to
the world's gem market (Koivula, 1981). Mineralog-
ically similar nodules are commonly characteristic
of alkali basalts, but included fragments of gem
peridot are considered quite rare. Recently, a sim-
ilar occurrence with tremendous gem potential
was reported from the Tertiary age Hanluoba basalt
in the Xuanhua area of Hebei Province, China
(Keller and Wang, 1986).
Other than peridot, a principal constituent of
Figure 5-1. Diagram showing processes leading to the the earth's mantle, relatively few gemstones are
magmatic occurrence of rubies. Courtesy of the Natural thought to be formed at great depth and trans-
History Museum of Los Angeles County. ported to the surface as xenocrystic passengers in
The Ruby Deposits of Chanthaburi-Trat, Thailand 73
alkali basalts. However, ruby and/or sapphiEe and of widespread lava flows that quickly weathered to
zircon occur in such an environment and typically an iron-rich (lateritic) soil (Thompson, 1983).
are found together as a suite, although they are The classic occurrence of gems coming from
also found individually. At Yoga Gulch, Montana, depth is found in the alkali basalt fields extending
where fine cornflower blue sapphires occur in a across Indochina. In Indochina, the occurrence of
gabbroic dike 2 to 7 m wide (Clabaugh, 1952), no gems varies regularly from east to west in very sim-
zircons or rubies are present, although some of the ilar alkali basalt flows across the peninsula. In
pink Yoga sapphires approach ruby in color. More Vietnam, the eastern extension of the flows, only
typical, however, are the sapphire and zircon facil- zircon has been recovered, the best examples being
ities on Hainan Island and at Mingsi in Fujian Prov- found in the Kha district (Webster, 1975). Zircon
ince, China (Keller and Keller, 1986), which have occurrences continue westward into eastern and
not yet been fully developed. The sapphires and north-central Kampuchea. The occurrence of
zircons are found eluvially in what was a deeply gem-quality zircon has been described from the
weathe~d alkali basalt. Very similar deposits have Ratanakiri Quaternary basaltic maslif in northern
recently been discovered in the Mercaderes-Rio Kampuchea by Lacombe (1970). In western Kam-
Mayo area in the state of Cauca, Colo~bia (Keller puchea, however, zircon diminishes in impor-
et al., 1985). tance, and sapphire becomes dominant along with
The geologic situation is almost identical to the ruby at the famous Pailin deposits (Berrange and
gem fields at Anakie, Queensland, and in the New Jobbins, 1976). These deposits are almost continu-
England district of New South Wales, Australia ous westward into Thailand, where the Chantha-
(Coldham, 1985). The New England district centers buri-Trat area produces huge quantities of gem
on the towns of Inverell and Glen Innes. Due to the ruby from deeply weathered alkali basalt a, and zir-
production of Anakie and New England, Australia con and sapphire diminish in importance. Further
is currently the supplier of between 50 and 70 per- west, ruby gives way to sapphire in the Kanchana-
cent of the world's sapphires. Both areas produce buri area west of Bangkok. Today, the Chanthaburi-
abundant yellow and dark blue-green sapphires, Trat gem field is of greatest importance.
along with pale yellow to brown zircons. The gem-
stones are all recovered from alluvial and eluvial
The Chanthaburi-Trat Gem Field, Thailand
deposits derived from deeply weathered alkali ba-
salts (MacNevin, 1971). The gemstones are associ- Thailand has been a world supplier of gem ruby
ated with black spinel (pleonaste) and are thought and sapphire since the latter part of the nineteenth
originally to have been constituents of xenocrysts century, although the deposits were not thought to
brought up from great depths. The alkali basalt be as important as those of neighboring Burma. In
acted, as in many other areas of the world, as an 1963, however, the Burmese deposits were nation-
elevator for the gemstones that moved them up to alized, and supplies of fine gems from these mines
the surface where they spilled out as constituents declined rapidly. The fact that so little is produced
in Burma today has catapulted the Thai deposits
into importance. An estimated 70 percent of the
world's high-quality gem rubies now come from
Thailand. Of these, 85 to 90 percent come from the
Chanthaburi-Trat district alone (Aranyakanon and
Vichit, 1979). Although the overall quality of these
rubies is not as high as those found in Burma,
some stones are exceptional (Fig. 5-2).
The gem deposits of the Chanthaburi-Trat (for-
merly Krat) area are entirely alluvial, having eroded
out of deeply weathered basalt flows (Fig. 5-3). The
region can be divided into two mining districts
based on the type of corundum produced. The first
lies to the west, near the town of Chanthaburi and
in the Chanthaburi province. It includes the fa-
mous Khao Ploi Waen and Bang Kha Cha mining
Figure 5-2. Two fine Thai rubies weighing 3.41 and 3.04 areas, known for their production of blue, blue-
carats. Photo courtesy of Jack S. D. Abraham, Precious green, and yellow sapphires, as well as black star
Gem Resources, Inc., New York. sapphires. The second district, approximately 45
Figure 5-3. Geologic

sketchmap of the
Chanthaburi-Trat area's
major ruby and sapphire
mines. Modifiedfrom Vichit
and associates (1978) and
Javanaphet (1969). Courtesy
of the Gemological Institute
ofAmerica.
km to the east of Chanthaburi, in Trat province, is

the currently very active Bo RailBo Waen mining
area, known for its significant production of ruby.
In fact, Bo RaiIBo Waen, together with the Pailin
area 27 km to the northeast in Kampuchea (for-
merly Cambodia), comprises the most important
ruby-producing area in the world today (Fig. 5-4).
Occasionally, green sapphires and color-change
sapphires occur in this district as well.
In 1980, an estimated 39.4 million carats of ruby
and sapphire were mined in the Chanthaburi-Trat
area by an estimated workforce of 20,000 miners;
these figures have more than doubled since 1973
(Stamm, 1981). Translating this production figure
into official export figures is difficult because the
latter does not include smuggled material or tour-
ist purchases that do not have to be declared at
customs. In addition, the tremendous amount of
corundum from elsewhere, particularly Sri Lanka
and Australia, that is brought to Thailand for heat
treatment and then sold in the gem markets of
Bangkok undoubtedly has a major effect on any
export statistics. The actual production and export
figures are probably much greater than those esti-
mated by the Department of Customs and the De-
partment of Business Economics.
Considering the importance of the Thai depos-
its, surprisingly little has been written about them.
Bauer and Spencer (1904) provide one of the best
early descriptions and a detailed map of the de-
posits. Most of the more recent work done by the Figure 5-4. Independent miners often work the tailings of
Geological Survey of Thailand has been published the more sophisticated operations in hopes of
in Thai journals which are, for the most part, diffi- recovering any overlooked ruby. This photo was taken at
cult to obtain in the United States. An excellent Bo Rai by Peter C. Keller.
general study of the gem deposits of Thailand was that the mines at Bo N awang were typically small
done by Aranyakanon and Vichit (1979). This report pits a meter deep sunk in coarse yellow-brown
included details on the Chanthaburi-Trat area. sand overlying a bed of clay. The rubies occurred
Charaljavanaphet (1951) did one ofthe earliest geo- at the base of the sand unit in a layer 15 to 25 cm
logical reports on the Bo Rai area. One of the most thick. These mines have been worked since about
important geological studies of the corundum- 1875.
related basalts in Thailand was by Vichit and asso- In 1895, an English company, The Sapphires
ciates (1978). Berrange and Jobbins (1976) did a and Rubies of Siam, Ltd., obtained the rights to
superbly detailed study of the gem deposits at mine in what was then Siam. This company was an
Pailin, Cambodia, in which they included many ref- extension of E. W. Streeter, a famous London jew-
erences to the deposits in the Chanthaburi-Trat eler with a Burmese gem-mining operation known
area. A summary of this work was recently pub- as Burma Ruby Mines Ltd. The company was not
lished by Jobbins and Berrange (1981). Articles by successful in the Chanthaburi-Trat area (Bauer and
visitors to the area include Moreau (1976), Chang Spencer, 1904).
(1969), Pavitt (1973), and Keller (1982). At Bo Channa, which has been worked since
about 1885, the mines were vertical shafts extend-
Location and Access ing to a depth of 7 to 8 m until they reached a gem
gravel 15 to 60 cm thick. Bauer and Spencer esti-
The Chanthaburi-Trat mining district is located in
mated that about 1,250 Burmese miners worked
southeastern Thailand, approximately 330 km east-
the Bo Channa and Bo Nawang areas at the time.
southeast of the capital city of Bangkok. The dis-
Since the introduction of the Siam Mining Act
trict extends from approximately 1020 to 1030 west
in 1919, all gem mining has been limited to Thai
longitude and 12 0 to 13 0 north latitude. The district
nationals. Today, about 2,000 people mine in the
is contiguous with the very productive Pailin ruby
Khao Ploi Waen-Bang Kha Cha area, and at least
and sapphire gem field, 27 km northeast of Bo Rai
20,000 people work between Bo Rai, Bo Waen, Nong
in Kampuchea.
Bon, and the deposits at Pailin in Kampuchea. In-
Access to Chanthaburi is quite easy now com-
terviews at Bo Rai revealed that at least 1,000 min-
pared to the late nineteenth century, when, ac-
cording to Bauer and Spencer (1904), a 20-hour ers from the area cross into Kampuchea every day.
journey by steamer from Bangkok was required. A
new highway has shortened the trip from Bangkok Geology
to Chanthaburi to 3 hours. Bo Rai is an additional
45 km from Chanthaburi eastward via highway Because of the deep chemical weathering and sub-
3157. Currently, there are more than 20 active op- sequent rapid erosion that is typically associated
erations, varying from hand to highly mechanized. with tropical climates, the corundum deposits of
the Chanthaburi-Trat district occur exclusively in
alluvial, eluvial, or residual lateritic soil deposits
History
derived from underlying basalt flows. The gems
Gem mining in the Chanthaburi-Trat area was first have long been thought to have been derived from
reported at Khao Ploi Waen, also known as Pagoda these basalts, although reports of in situ occur-
Hill and Hill of Gems, in 1850. Khao Ploi Waen is rences are rare (Vichit et al., 1978).
about 8 km southwest of Chanthaburi, near the Although the precise age of the basalts has not
village of Bang Kha Chao In 1850, the Sh:ans and yet been determined, they are thought to be rela-
Burmese were mining sapphires here (Pavitt, 1973). tively young; estimates range from Tertiary to Pleis-
According to Bauer and Spencer (1904), a mission- tocene (Leon Silver, personal communication,
ary report dated 1859 stated that a handful of ru- 1982). According to Jobbins and Berrange (1981),
bies could be collected from the Hill of Gems in the closely related Pailin basalts have been radio-
half an hour. Interestingly, the pagoda that Bauer metrically determined to be 1.4 to 2.14 million
and Spencer cites still stands. years old. This places the basalts in Upper Pliocene
Bauer and Spencer (1904) described the state to Lower Pleistocene age. They have been infor-
of the ruby and sapphire deposits in the Trat prov- mally designated the Chanthaburi-Trat basalts by
ince (then known as Krat) in the 1870s and 1880s. Vichit et al. (1978). These flows unconformably
He divided the district into two groups roughly 50 overlie the Devonian-age 0 Smoet formation and
km apart: Bo Nawang, an area of about 40 square Triassic-age Tadeth group that Berrange and Job-
kilometers; and Bo Channa, 50 km to the northeast bins (1976) discuss in their comprehensive study of
and a little over a square km in extent. Bauer noted the Pailin gem field. Other noteworthy geologic
units in the region include granites and granodio- basaltic lava flows. Some volcanic features, such as
rites of possible Cretaceous age and the Triassic- the volcanic plug now exposed as a remnant at
age Khao Sa-Bab granite that outcrops just east of Khao Ploi Waen, were also formed at this time.
Chanthaburi (Javanaphet, 1969). Since this period of mountain building and vol-
Outcrops of the Chanthaburi-Trat basalt are canic activity, the area has been geologically quiet,
rare. The only notable outcrops are at Khao Ploi and the surface has been exposed to intense
Waen and Khao Wao. At Khao Ploi Waen, it occurs weathering and erosion as a consequence of the
as a dark, fine-grained to glassy vesicular basalt; the harsh tropical climate. Deep residual soil horizons
hill itself is thought to be a volcanic plug that is formed over the basalts, which locally have been
possibly a source for the gem-bearing basalt flows eroded and redeposited to form the secondary
in the area (Taylor and Buravas, 1951). The plug at gem deposits of the region. Because corundum is
Khao Ploi Waen yields blue, green, and yellow sap- durable and heavy, it is an ideal mineral for con-
phires as well as black star sapphires. Rubies are centration in these alluvial or eluvial deposits.
rare at this locality. The gem deposits in the Chanthaburi-Trat area
Invariably, the gem deposits are associated vary greatly in thickness, depending on the topog-
with basalt flows or at least remnant flows. The raphy of the area and the bedrock. In the Chantha-
flow at Chanthaburi is only about 35 square kilo- buri area, sapphires are found on the surface at
meters, but the basalts in the Bo Rai area are much the Khao Ploi Waen and at a depth of 3 to 8 m in
more extensive. As expected, the basalt flows par- the area adjoining the hill and at Bang Kha Chao
allel to the gem deposits, trending in a north-south In the relatively flat Bo Rai area, the gem gravel is
direction. The flow in the Bo Rai area, about 27 km at a depth of at least 4 to 10 m and varies in thick-
by 4 km, roughly delineates the Bo Rai mining dis- ness from 0.3 m to 1 m. At Bo Rai, the ruby is asso-
trict, which Vichit and associates (1978) estimate to ciated with black spinel, olivine, and, in rare in-
consist of about 23 gem localities. Bo Rai produces stances, blue, green, or color-change sapphires.
ruby almost exclusively.
From a petrographic point of view, the Chan- Mining Methods
thaburi-Trat basalts are fine-grained, olivine-bear-
ing alkaline basalts called basanitoids by Vichit et The methods used to mine ruby and sapphire in
al. (1978) and basanites by Berrange and Jobbins the Chanthaburi area reflect all levels of technolog-
(1976). These basalts locally contain spinel-rich ical sophistication, from the simple rattan basket
lherzolite nodules, which may, in fact, be the ulti- to the most advanced bulldozer. The mining in the
mate source for the corundum. Lherzolite nodules Khao Ploi Waen area is typical of Thailand's most
are thought to form in the upper mantle of the primitive extraction methods. Independent miners
earth, at depths of about 50 km, and may be unre- lease land from the local owners. They dig a verti-
lated to the magmas that brought them to the sur- cal shaft about 1 m in diameter to a depth of about
face. The basalts contain augite, pyrope garnet, 10 m, where the gem gravels are usually inter-
calcic plagioclase, zircon, spinel, and magnetite. sected. No ladder is used; miners simply dig foot-
The magnetite has been reported as megacrysts up holes into the side of the shaft. The soil is lifted to
to 6 cm in diameter. Spinel, which along with oli- the surface with a large bamboo crane and rattan
vine and enstatite is typical of lherzolite, is locally baskets. When the gem gravels are encountered,
abundant but rarely of gem quality. they are washed in artificial pools and sorted by
The structural and historical geology of the hand in round rattan sieves. According to Pavitt
Chanthaburi-Trat area is essentially identical to (1973), about 2,000 people work using these simple
that outlined by Jobbins and Berrange (1981) for methods in the Khao Ploi Waen area alone.
the Pallin area of Kampuchea, which could easily Just to the south of Khao Ploi Waen, at Bang
be considered part of the Chanthaburi-Trat dis- Kha Cha, which is famous for its black star sap-
trict. Jobbins and Berrange note that during the phires and blue and green sapphires, a different
Himalayan orogeny of early to middle Tertiary style of mining can be seen. Here, the sapphires are
times, the region, which is largely underlain by Ju- recovered from the muddy tidal flats of the Gulf of
rassic-Triassic sandstones and Devonian phyllites, Siam, which is located about 5 km to the south.
was uplifted and intruded by granites and grano- The gem miners take boats out into the flats at low
diorites as represented by the Khao Sa-Bob granite. tide and fill them with the gem-bearing mud. They
During the final stages ofthis orogenic episode, the then take the mud to shore, where it is washed
area was also intruded by basaltic dikes that spilled with the standard rattan sieves. More sophisticated
onto the earth's surface in the form of extensive operations are conducted at Bang Kha Cha, but the
most technologically advanced mining can be seen permitted to keep what they recover. Other small
at Bo Rai, the ruby mines located on the border of mining groups search the already worked tailings
Kampuchea, where claims are generally about of the large, mechanized operations. Usually these
1,620 m square and the landscape is dotted with small miners are successful enough to support
bulldozers and sophisticated washing equipment. themselves and their families. Commonly, miners
Large-scale mechanized mining was formally can be observed sorting and selling their ruby pro-
banned in Thailand in 1980 in response to pressure duction in front of their homes.
from farmers who claimed that the mining was de-
stroying the topsoil. Even so, the majority of the
Characteristics of Thai Ruby and Sapphire
ruby-mining operations observed during my recent
visit to Bo Rai used bulldozers to remove the over- The rubies taken from the basalt fields of south-
burden and high-pressure water cannons to wash eastern Thailand can generally be distinguished by
the gem gravel that is then pumped into sluices their color (Fig. 5-12) and unique inclusions from
from which the ruby is recovered (Fig. 5-5). Accord- those derived from the crystalline limestone terrain
ing to Stamm (1981), "special" permits that allow of Burma or from the graphite gneisses of East
mechanized mining are issued for 2,500 baht ($125) Africa. Gubelin's (1940, 1971) detailed studies of in-
per month. In addition to the bulldozers and water clusions typical of Thai rubies indicate that the
cannons, the latest mechanical treatment includes most common inclusions are subhexagonal to
a jig or willoughby table washer to concentrate the rounded opaque metallic grains of pyrrhotite,
corundum at the end of the long sluice (Figs. 5-6 Fei-xS; yellowish hexagonal platelets of apatite,
and 5-7). Most of these so-called new mining meth- Cas (P0 4 )3 (OH,F,Cl); and reddish brown almandite
ods at Bo Rai have been borrowed from the basic garnets, Fe,.Al2(Si0 4 )3 ' These inclusions were com-
principles of alluvial tin mining used at Phuket, on monly surrounded by circular feathers and char-
the southern extension of Thailand. acteristic polysynthetic twinning planes.
Not all ruby mining in the Bo Rai area is mech- A parcel of more than 500 rough rubies I ob-
anized; here, too, some is done by pit miners using tained from mines in the Bo Rai area were exam-
only the traditional rattan sieve (Fig. 5-8). These pit ined for characteristic inclusions and any other
miners may work in small groups or on a few distinguishing features. The parcel consisted of
square meters ofleased land (Figs. 5-9, 5-10, and 5- well-rounded fragments, generally under 5 mm,
11). Many of them are refugees from nearby Kam- that exhibited color variations from strongly violet
puchea. They commonly pay the government or to a classic pigeon blood red. Grains larger than a
landowner about 500 baht ($25) per month and are centimeter were rare. The refractive index (1.766-
1.774) and specific gravity (3.97-4.05) of ruby do
not differ with locality. The high iron content of
the Thai rubies does influence their behavior when
exposed to ultraviolet radiation in that their fluo-
rescence is inhibited significantly; the parcel
examined exhibited the very weak fluorescence ex-
pected for Thai rubies.
By far the most common inclusion in the par-
cel of rubies studied was subhedral to anhedral
pyrrhotite, which was commonly altered to a black
sub metallic material that x-ray diffraction analysis
by Chuck Fryer of GIA revealed to be goethite,
FeO(OH). Because basalts are unusually high in
iron, pyrrhotite inclusions in rubies from a basaltic
terrain are not surprising. Furthermore, according
to Carmichael and associates (1974), pyrrhotite ap-
pears to be the dominant primary sulfide in basal-
tic rocks.
In all the samples studied, no inclusions of al-
mandite garnet or rutile were observed, and yel-
Figure 5-5. At Bo Rai, gem gravels are washed by high-
lowish anhedral hexagonal platelets of translucent
pressure water cannons and transported up a pipe (seen
to the right in photo) to a long sluice. Photo by Peter C. apatite were rarely noted. A high percentage of the
Keller. stones studied were totally free of diagnostic min-
Figure 5-6. After the gem gravels exit the pipe, they are Figure 5-7. Ajig or willoughby table washer, a device
run over a long sluice. The heavier corundum borrowed from the Phuket tin mines on the southern
concentrate collects in ajig at the end. Photo by Peter C. extension of Thailand, is very effective at concentrating
Keller. ruby. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Figure 5-8. Primitive washing of gem gravels at Chanthaburi-Trat area. Photo by Peter C.
Keller.
Figure 5-9. Hand pumps assist the independent miners in controlling the flooding of their
workings. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Figure 5-10. Many of the independent miners at Bo Rai Figure 5-11. The independent miners at Bo Rai use brass
are Kampuchean rejiIgees, as suggested by their dress. trays to sort their rubies. Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Photo by Peter C. Keller.
Figure 5-12. Over 70 percent of the world's ruby comes from the area near Chanthaburi
on the Thai-Cambodian border. This extraordinary ruby and diamond necklace from the
Brent Laird collection is a superb example of the Thai ruby. Photo by Harold and Erica
Van Pelt.
eral inclusions, however; the most characteristic Giibelin, E. 1940. Differences between Burmese and Sia-
features in these stones were secondary stains of mese rubies. Gems & Gemology 3:69-72.
iron oxide that appeared in almost all fractures. Giibelin, E. 1971. New analytical results of the inclusions
Given the iron-rich nature of the presumed host in Siam rubies. Journal of Australian Gemmology
12(7):242-252.
basalt, this abundance of iron is to be expected.
Holloway, J. R., and C. Cross. 1978. The San Carlos Alka-
The brownish to purplish overtones of the rubies
line Rock Association. Arizona Bur. Geol. Min. Tech.
and their weak fluorescence when exposed to Spec. Pap. 2:171-173.
shortwave ultraviolet and x-radiation has been at- Javanaphet, J. C. 1969. Geological Map of Thailand
tributed to the characteristically high concentra- 1:1,000,000. Department of Mineral Resources, Bang-
tions of iron found in the Thai rubies. kok.
Sapphires recovered from the Khao Ploi Waen Jobbins, E. A, and J. P. Berrange. 1981. The Pailin ruby
and Bang Kha Cha areas outside of Chanthaburi and sapphire gemfield, Cambodia. Journal of Gem-
are quite different morphologically from the form- ology 17(8):555-567.
less Bo Rai rubies. These sapphires show signs of Keller, A., and P. Keller. 1986. The sapphires of Mingxi,
transport, in that they occur as well-rounded hex- Fujian Province, China. Gems and Gemology 22:41-
45.
agonal prisms. I would suggest, however, that the
Keller, P. C. 1982. The Chanthaburi-Trat gem field, Thai-
sapphires have not traveled as far as the rubies,
land. Gems & Gemology 18(4):186-196.
which rarely exhibit any of their original hexagonal Keller, P. C., J.I. Koivula, and G. Jara. 1985. Sapphire from
morphology. The sapphires are generally green, the Mercaderes-Rio Mayo area, Cauca, Columbia.
blue, yellow, or black, and the black sapphires Gems & Gemology 21(1):20-25.
commonly exhibit asterism. They range in diame- Keller, P. c., and F. Wang. 1986. A survey of the gemstone
ter from less than a millimeter to 10 cm, with an resources of China. Gems & Gemology 22:3-13.
average size of 3 to 6 mm. Large, hexagonal blue- Koivula, J. 1981. San Carlos peridot. Gems & Gemology
green sapphire specimens as large as 1,720 carats 17:205-214.
have been reported from the Bang Kha Cha area Lacombe, P. 1970. Le massif basaltique quaternaire a
(Pavitt, 1973), but no gem-quality stones of this size zircons-gemmes de Ratanakiri, Cambodge nord-
oriental. French Bur. Recherches Geol. et Minieres
have ever been reported.
Bull. (ser. 2) 4(2):29-53; (4)33-71.
MacNevin, A A 1971. Sources of sapphires in the New
England District, New South Wales. New South
REFERENCES Wales Geol. Surv. Quart. Notes 3:1-5'
Moreau, M. 1976. Nong Bon ou Ie rubis de thailande.
Aranyakanon, P., and P. Vichit. 1979. Gemstones in Thai- Revue de Gemmologie afg. 47:10-12.
land. Unpublished report for the Economic Geology Pavitt, J. A L. 1973. Sapphire mining in Chanthaburi
Division of the Ministry of Industry of Thailand. (Thailand). Journal of Gemmology 13:302-307.
Bauer, M., and L. J. Spencer. 1904. Precious Stones (trans. Shigley, J. E. and E. E. Foord. 1984. Gem-quality red beryl
of 1896 German text). Charles Griffin & Co., London. from the Wah Wah Mountains, Utah. Gems & Gem-
647 pages. ology 20(4):208-221.
Berrange, J. P., and E. A Jobbins. 1976. The Geology, Gem- Sinkankas, J. 1959. Gemstones of North America. Van
mology, Mining Methods and Economic Potential of Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York.
the Pailin Ruby and Sapphire Gem-jield, Khmer Re- Stamm, D. 1981. A star is born: New facets of Thailand's
public. Institute of Geological Sciences Report 35, gem trade. New Look Investor 13(8):8-20.
London. 32 pages. Taylor, G. C., and S. Buravas. 1951. Gem deposits at Khao
Broomfield, C. S., and A. R. Shride. 1956. Mineral re- Ploi Waen and Bang Ka Cha, Chanthaburi Province.
sources of the San Carlos Indian Reservation, Ari- Geologic Reconnaissance of the mineral deposits of
zona. U.S. Geol. Surv. Bull. 1027-n:613-691. Thailand. Geological Survey Memoir 1:144-148.
Carmichael, I., F. Turner, and J. Verhoogen. 1974. Igneous Thompson, D. 1983. Sapphires in New South Wales. Dept.
Petrology. McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York. of Mineral Resources, New South Wales, Sydney,
Chang, F. 1969. A trip to Chanthaburi, Thailand. Lapidary Australia.
Journal 23:1020-1024. Vichit, P., S. vudhichativanich, and R. Hansawek. 1978.
Charaljavanaphet, J. 1951. Gem deposits at Bo Na-Wong, The distribution and some characteristics of corun-
Tok-Phrom, Bo-Rai in Chanthaburi and Trat prov- dum-bearing basalts in Thailand. Journal of the Geo-
inces. Geologic Reconnaissance of the Mineral De- logical Society of Thailand 3:M4-1-M4-38.
posits of Thailand: Geological Survey Memoir 1:148- Vuich, J., and R. Moore. 1977. Bureau studies olivine re-
150. sources on San Carlos Apache Reservation. Arizona
Clabaugh, S. E. 1952. Corundum Deposits of Montana. Bur. Mines Field Notes 7(2):6-10.
U.S. Geol. Surv. Bull. 983. Webster, R. 1975. Gems: Their Sources, Descriptions and
Coldham, T. 1985. Sapphires from Australia. Gems & Identification. Butterworths, London. 938 pages.
Gemology 21(3):130-146.
PART III
Gemstones Formed by
Very High Temperatures
and Pressures
Chapter 6. Gemstones Formed by Low-Pressure

Regional Metamorphism: The Ruby
Deposits of Mogok, Burma
Chapter 7. Gemstones Formed by High-Pressure

Regional Metamorphism: The Jadeite
Deposits of Tawmaw, Burma
83
co
*"'
I ~t~~UNTA'N,
o Nephrde
v SAYANMTNs..
LAKe BAIKAL
r-S'SSEATSt<. [ USSR
I URALS, USSR Nephnre
-,' o Gatne,
'<oJ _TAKOWAJA.OISfAICT.
o URALS-USSR •• 4
LO w ER FRAZIER ~. Aleundrile ~I MALAYA .......
RivER, CANAOA..
Emerald ~BYSTAAY"
USSR
NeD""'. KUNLUN MTNS , LapiS
AQCt<CREEK 11 v~ CH•NA
AHO MISSOURI VsAR. e.SANG. Nephrite
rI
RiVERS AREA.. BADAKSHAN,
MONTANA ~
Sapphire rr.8HAN.STAN 0 HUNi}AN TAWMAW,
MONlEREV COUNTY. -",,''': ~j~o~~~~I~ i~;e~,~
CALIFORNIA
·JAGOAlESt<.T~ O 0 LKASHGAR. MOOO.t<.
Nephr/I"
AFGHANI I PAJ(ISTAN VBURM
LANOER. WYOMING Ruby - Emerald A Ruby I
Neoh"'fI
o'0 Spine
'0
CEARA
BRAZil
Emerald
CANAIBA.
QAHIA.
OAAZIL MOROGORO,
Emerald TANZANIA
" ':" HEMAnr" Ruby <. 0
MINAS GEAA1S, OIL.EVI H ILLS,
<\) '.
BRAZIL UM8A. TANZANIA
AJexandme Ruby
ANAGE. Sapplljr. POONA. __
MINAS GERAIS. Gamel
BRAZIL W AUSTR .........
o LOW PRESSURE REGIONAL Em"ra'd AMPAIN ..... MADAGASCAR Emerald
ITABIRA. Garnet
METAMORPHIC GEM DEPOSITS MINAS GERAIS. MUAGU IO£.
BR.-.zII. MQZAMEUOUe
Emerald Garne,
/::;,. HIGH PRESSURE REGIONAL \Jm~J"I;;
METAMORPHIC GEM DEPOSITS M1 COOK.
NEW ZEALAND
Neph",e
Q
~~
Map 3. World distribution of important gem deposits formed by great heat and pressure.
M any gemstones grow from fluids, in particu-
lar, water and molten rock. Others form in
low-pressure gem deposit is the Mogok ruby mine
in northern Burma.
solid rock by a process known as metamorphism, The high-pressure (low-temperature) type ofre:
which occurs when the temperature or pressure gional metamorphism (referred to as blueschist
rises so high that the original minerals in the rock metamorphism) commonly occurs where the ocean
can no longer exist. With limited melting they grad- floor slides under the edge of a continent. As it
ually change to new minerals that can exist under moves down, the ocean crust is subjected to great
the new conditions. Metamorphism commonly pressure and undergoes metamorphism. Blocks of
takes millions of years and may involve a small the ocean crust are broken off and pushed back up
amount of water or limited melting. Most metamor- to the surface of the earth before they can become
phic gemstones result from either low-pressure too hot. The minerals formed under these conditions
(high-temperature) or high-pressure regional meta- are quite different from those formed during high-
morphism, that is, metamorphism that occurs over temperature regional metamorphism. Jadeite is the
a wide area. only important gemstone formed by this process.
Low-pressure (high-temperature) regional meta- The world's most important deposits of gem-
morphism typically occurs when two continents col- quality jadeite are found in northern Burma, where
lide (Fig. 6-1). On the earth's surface a vast mountain veins of jadeite intermixed with albite feldspar
range forms, such as the Himalayas where India occur on a plateau about 270 miles north of Man-
once collided with the rest of Asia, and deep below dalay. The best-known deposit is at Tawmaw. The
the mountain range, where both temperature and jadeite was first recovered as stream-worn boulders
pressure became extreme, metamorphism creates from the riverbeds in the region, and later the
new minerals, including ruby, emerald, garnet, source of the jadeite was found as veins in hard rock
chrysoberyl, and nephrite jade. The most important (Map 3).
85
6
Gemstones Formed by
Low-Pressure Regional
Metamorphism: The Ruby
Deposits of Mogok, Burma
Low-pressure metamorphism can take place lo- Likewise, the invading rock also contributes ele-
cally, as contact metamorphism, or over large ments, the most common of which is silica.
areas, as regional metamorphism (Figure 6-1). Contact metamorphic gem deposits are com-
When hot magma intrudes into the cool surround- monly the result of granitic (silica-rich) magmas
ing rock, the rock is heated and saturated by hy- intruding into reactive carbonate rocks. However,
drothermal fluids and commonly undergoes some notable exceptions exist, the most important
change in the form of replacement of some of its of which is when a silica-poor magma, such as a
component minerals or recrystallization of the en- gabbro, invades aluminum-rich rocks such as shale
tire rock mass. The type and degree of change are and is desilicified. This desilicification in the pres-
dependent upon the temperature and chemistry of ence of an abundance of aluminum allows the
the intruding magma and the type of rock sub- crystallization of aluminum oxides rather than alu-
jected to the intrusion. Resistant, unreactive rocks, minum silicates and hence the formation of corun-
such as quartzites and sandstones, may go un- dum (ruby and sapphire).
changed when invaded by the molten rock. Others, Low-pressure (high-temperature) metamor-
most dramatically carbonates such as limestones, phism can also take place on a much larger scale,
may undergo tremendous change due to their not necessarily in proximity to igneous activity,
chemical reactivity. If the carbonate rock is mag- and the mineral products of low-pressure regional
nesium rich, such as dolomite, magnesium min- metamorphism are very similar, if not identical in
erals such as diopside or serpentine form. some instances, to those of contact metamorph-
87
88 Gemstones Formed by Low-Pressure Regional Metamorphism
Figure 6-1. Diagram showing the process of low-pressure regional metamorphism.

Courtesy of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
ism. In fact, controversy surrounds the origin of Low-pressure regional metamorphism com-
some gem deposits, and the principal arguments monly produces mica schists that may contain
center on the presence or absence of igneous activ- other minerals, including various species of gamet,
ity nearby. ruby, and sapphire, as well as emerald and alex-
Lapis lazuli is a rare metamorphic rock with andrite chrysoberyl. In fact, the most common en-
the mineral lazurite as an essential constitutent. vironment for emeralds on a worldwide basis is in
Coarse-grained lazurite commonly occurs with schists. Occasionally, these schist-type emerald de-
diopside, marble, and pyrite, remote from any ig- posits also contain alexandrite chrysoberyl.
neous rocks that could be related to its formation, During regional metamorphism, granitic rocks
and therefore low-pressure (high-grade) regional including pegmatites are often mobilized, intrude
metamorphism is the process for its formation. Ho- the newly formed mica schists, and interact to
garth and Griffin (1978) suggest that such rocks rep- form new minerals. As an example, Sinkankas
resent metaevaporites that recrystallized during (1981) states that emeralds and alexandrites in
high-grade regional metamorphism. Afghanistan schist are the result of a chemical interaction in-
and Baffin Island are good examples of such de- duced when pegmatitic granitic rocks intrude sil-
posits. Hogarth and Griffin (1980) point out, how- ica-poor basic rocks such as a schist and the
ever, that lapis lazuli of much finer-grained texture necessary chemical constituents for the emerald
can also be the result of contact-metamorphic ac- and alexandrite are transferred from the granite to
tivity around an intrusive igneous body, and they the schist. Sinkankas terms this process e;wmeta-
use the Italian Mountain area of Colorado as an morphism because changes in the schist were the
example. result of changes induced by outside constituents.
The Mogok ruby deposit in upper Burma is The chromium necessary to induce the colors in
another controversial deposit that is reviewed in the emerald and alexandrite was probably inherent
detail later in this chapter. Many gemology texts in the schist.
list Mogok as the result of contact metamorphism, The classic example of emerald in biotite schist
yet the proper intrusive that could be responsible is that on the east side of the Ural Mountains in the
for the marbles that are interbedded with schists Soviet Union. Here, near the town of Sverdlovsk, a
of unquestionably regional metamorphic origin is series of mines produce emeralds from mica schist.
lacking. According to the Russian geologist Fersman, these
Many other gem deposits are easily ascribed to deposits were the result of the "entrapment and
regional metamorphism. Except for the Colombian compression of sediments between the acidic
deposits and perhaps those of Pakistan, most of the granite of the Western Zone massif and the basic
world's emerald deposits are the result of low- and ultrabasic rocks of the Eastern Zone, both in-
pressure regional metamorphic activity. troducing chemical elements into the Central Zone
The Ruby Deposits of Mogok, Burma 89
which subsequently gave rise to the emerald-bear- of the world's finest rubies and spinels have been
ing biotite schists." The area also is famous for pro- recovered. Limestone subjected to low-pressure re-
ducing the world's finest alexandrites from these gional metamorphism would give rise to very simi-
same biotite schists (Sinkankas, 1981). lar rocks. More detailed examinations of the
Other important schist-type emerald deposits deposit are obviously required.
include the Miku deposit in Zambia (Hickman,
1972); Sandawana, Zimbabwe; Swat Valley, Pakistan
(Giibelin, 1982); Habachtal, Austria; Poona, West
Australia; Wadi Sikait, Egypt (MacAlister, 1900);
Leysdorp, Transvaal, South Africa (LeGrange, 1929); THE RUBY DEPOSITS
Mewar, India (Roy, 1955); Lake Manyara, Tanzania OF MOGOK, BURMA
(Giibelin, 1974; 1976a; 1976b); and Alexand3r
County, North Carolina (Sinkankas, 1976). Any list of the classic, historically most important
One of the most interesting regional metamor- gem deposits of the world must include the Mogok
phic gem areas, yet one of the least understood, is Stone Tract in Upper Burma. Mogok has been as-
the East African gem belt of Kenya and Tanzania. sociated with the world's finest rubies for more
The variety of gems found in this area is astound- than four centuries, but not until the British as-
ing. The Precambrian schists of East Africa have sumed control of Burma in 1886 was Mogok's po-
yielded ruby, emerald, alexandrite, chrome tour- tential for producing beautiful, deep crimson
maline, scapolite, and rhodolite gamet, as well as (pigeon blood) rubies truly realized (Fig. 6-2). Al-
new gem species such as tanzanite and tsavolite though Mogok is known particularly for these fine
garnet. rubies, quantities of fine sapphires, spinels, and
Nephrite jade also is the result of low-pressure peridots are also found there. Sapphires are most
regional metamorphism, probably on a localized abundant in the nearby Kathe, Kyatpyin, and Gwe-
scale. The nephrite deposits of Monterey County, bin deposits; peridot is limited to the area of Ber-
California, and of Taiwan are generally thought to nardmyo some 10 km north-northwest of the vil-
be the result of a metasomatic product of serpen- lage of Mogok. Also found in gem quality in the
tinate derived from an ultramafic rock such as peri- Mogok area are apatite, scapolite, moonstone, zir-
dotite. con, gamet, iolite, and amethyst.
Similar nephrite occurrences are found in the Historical records indicate that the Mogok
Kunlun Mountains of Xinjang Autonomous Region, Stone Tract has been worked since at least 1597
China; New Zealand; the Soviet Union; Taiwan; and A.D., when the king of Burma secured the mines
Alaska, Canada, California, and Wyoming in North from the local Shan ruler. After the British annexa-
America. tion of Upper Burma in 1886, the mines were leased
Several major corundum deposits, including to a British firm, which organized Burma Ruby
the ruby deposits in India, East Africa, and the Mines, Ltd. Although the British firm used modem
Hunza Valley, Pakistan, have been formed by low- methods to work the mines, profitability was spo-
pressure regional metamorphism. Discussion of radic at best. Burma Ruby Mines worked the area
the origin of these deposits pits regional metamor- until the early 1930s when Mogok reverted back to
phic origin versus localized contact metamor- native mining and the methods used for hundreds
phism (Giibelin, 1982; Okrusch et al., 1976). One of of years before the arrival of the British.
the best examples of this controversy, as well as Today, little information comes out of Burma
one of the most important gem-producing areas in regarding the Mogok Stone Tract. Since 1962, when
the world, is the ruby and spinel mines of the the Socialist regime took power and subsequently
Mogok Stone Tract in Burma. nationalized all industry including gem mining,
When a granitic intrusion comes in contact few foreigners have been allowed to visit Mogok.
with limestone containing aluminum-rich impuri- During this period, supplies of rubies from Burma
ties, it is recrystallized into coarse calcite crystals have diminished drastically. Although some stones
to form a crystalline limestone or marble. Any im- are sold at annual auctions in Rangoon, the few
purities such as aluminum also crystallize into high-quality gems that emerge are smuggled out
new aluminum minerals such as corundum (Al z0 3 ). through Thailand.
If the limestone is dolomitic, that is, additionally Because of this isolation, research for this
contains abundant magnesium, spinel (Mg,Al,O) chapter consists of a thorough review of the litera-
may form in place of corundum. This has been the ture as well as interviews with people who had
classic explanation at Mogok, Burma, where some visited Mogok prior to 1962. The photos, which
90 Gemstones Formed by Low-Pressure Regional Meiamorphisll1
Figure 6-2. This extraordinary 10.02-carat ruby ring and the accompanying 14.54-carat
(total weight) ruby earrings are superb examples of Burmese rubies. From the Ballreich
and Kantor collection. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
The Ruby Deposits 01' Mogok, Burma 91
come from some of these same people, are partic- ing of importance has been contributed to the mod-
ularly rare. The literature is rich in information on em literature.
Mogok, usually based on a visit to the area by some
Location and Access
Western gem dealer. The first such report was that
of Pierre d'Amato (1833), who described the local The Mogok Stone Tract is located in the Kathe dis-
mining methods in the Mogok area. Since then trict of Upper Burma between latitudes 22°50'45" N
many articles have been written, principally on the to 23°5'15" N and longitudes 96°19' E to 96°35' E, or
mining activities (Wynne, 1897; Morgan, 1904; Gor- approximately 700 km north of the Burmese capital
don, 1888; Scott, 1936). Since the 1965 article by of Rangoon. Mogok (Figure 6-3) is about 150 km NE
Giibelin, who also produced a superb 2-hour of Mandalay, and is located at an elevation of about
documentary film on the area, however, noth- 1,200 m (4,000 feet). It is the major population cen-
Figure 6-3. A view of the town of Mogok comes from across the artificial lake that resulted
from the flooding of the el(tensive works of the Burma Ruby Mines, Ltd. Photo by Edward
Giibelin.
ter in the area, with 6,000 inhabitants reported in annexed Upper Burma to the colony of India that
1960 (Meen 1962). The tract is about 1,040 square same year. In October 1887, the Upper Burma Ruby
kilometers in extent and includes the townships of Regulations were promulgated, creating the so-
Kyatpyin, Kathe, and Mogok. called stone tracts. In November of that year, the
The general area of the tract is very mountain- Mogok Stone Tract was established (Chhibber,
ous, forming the western borders of the Shan Pla- 1934a and 1934b). In 1889, the British government,
teau. Most of the mining takes place in the alluvia through the secretary of state for India, awarded
of floors and flanks of the Mogok, Kyatpyin, Kathe, control of the Mogok mines to Edwin Streeter, the
and Luda valleys. Mogok Valley is the most impor- eminent Bond Street (London) jeweler, who orga-
tant, consisting of a narrow alluvial plain, 5 km long nized Burma Ruby Mines, Ltd. The initial 1889
running NE-SW, and about 1 km wide. lease of the mining rights to the 10- by 20-mile (15-
All reports of travel to Mogok, when it was per- by 30-km) tract was for a 7-year period at an annual
mitted, indicate that access to the mining area was rent of 26,666 pounds plus 16.66% of the net profits
very difficult. According to Ehrman (1957), there (Adams, 1926).
were two principal travel alternatives. The first When Burma Ruby Mines, Ltd., moved into
started with three days by train from Rangoon to Mogok, it faced severe difficulties, not the least of
Mandalay, followed by two days of boat travel up which was that the richest deposits were under the
the Irrawaddy River to Thabeikkyin, where one village of Mogok itself. Before mining could begin,
could hire a car for the final 95 tortuous kilometers. the entire village had to be moved to its present
The second, and far easier, means was a four-to- location. In the years that followed, the company
six-hour flight from Rangoon to Momeik via Union also had to build roads, bridges, buildings, five
of Burma Airways, then about 40 km by jeep from washing mills, and a 400-kw hydroelectric plant. In
Momeik to Mogok. addition, the company Was plagued by the age-old
Because the CUITent Burmese government lim- problem of miners "highgrading" and smuggling a
its foreign visitors to a 24-hour visa, any travel into large percentage of the gem production (Brown,
the interior is virtually impossible. In addition, the 1933). The Indian government protected the local
Mogok area is under military control and visits by miners, stating that Burma Ruby Mines could not
foreigners are forbidden (Nordland, 1982). disturb established native miners in their work, nor
remove them except by purchase of their claims.
Otherwise, the British company held a monopoly
History and Production
on the mining rights of the Mogok Stone Tract
According to Webster (1975), the earliest historical (Adams, 1926; Calhoun, 1929).
record of Mogok shows that the mines were taken In 1896, the original 7-year lease was renewed
over by the king of Burma in 1597 from the local and extended for 14 years wiith a fixed rental fee of
ruling Shan in exchange for the town of Mong Mit 13,333 pounds plus 30% of the net profit per year.
(Momeik) some 40 km away. The descendants of The mining of rubies in Mogok was at an all-time
the king worked the mines intermittently. In 1780, high. Five large washing mills processed thousands
King Bodawgyi operated the mines with slave of tons of earth each day. The area eventually be-
labor. Shortly thereafter, the king placed control of came so prosperous that more mills were erected
the Mogok mines in the hands of governors (50S) 12 km from Mogok, near Kyatpyin. All mining was
who allowed mining on payment of a tax. Valuable open pit, using large hydraulic monitors, or "can-
stones remained the property of the king, however, nons," under high pressure to wash gem gravels
with no compensation to the miner. This period through a series of sluice boxes (Webster, 1975).
was one of great oppression, and many miners left The area prospered under the control of the
the region. The area never really recovered, and by Burma Ruby Mines until 1908, when large numbers
the 1870s conditions were so intolerable that King of synthetic rubies entered the world gem market
Thebaw began negotiating with outside companies and caused immediate panic among ruby buyers
to work the deposits. He eventually leased mining worldwide. Sales of rubies declined dramatically.
rights to the Burmah [sic] and Bombay Trading Although the Mogok operations continued all
Company but arbitrarily canceled their lease on through World War I, in 1925 Burma Ruby Mines
the ruby mines in 1882 (Mineral Resources, 1886). went into voluntary liquidation (Brown, 1933). The
This action, along with certain provocations to the company had 6 years remaining on its lease, how-
British-controlled lumber industry, led the British ever, and struggled on until 1931, when it surren-
to invade Upper Burma in 1886 with an army of dered the lea'S'e to the government (Halford-
30,000 men (Mineral Resources, 1886). The British Watkins, 1932).
Keely (1982), one of the managers of the mine, mese troops now oversees the government-owned
gave some additional insight into the decline of mines.
modem mining in the Mogok area. He pointed out
that exceptionally heavy rainfall in 1929 caused se-
Geology
vere flooding, which destroyed all of the electric
pumps as well as the drainage tunnels used to Several detailed accounts of the geology of the
keep the mines from being inundated. The large Mogok Stone Tract have been published. The ear-
lake formed by the flooding still remains today. Sev- liest is the large, comprehensive work of Brown
eral attempts were made to repair the flood dam- and Judd (1896), who conducted their study on
age but with no success. Furthermore, as the behalf of the Burma Ruby Mines, Ltd., and the sec-
modem techniques were no longer considered retary of state for India. La Touche, perhaps best
economic, the native miners and their centuries- known for his work on the Kashmir sapphire
old mining methods took over Mogok once again. mines, included the Mogok area in his Geology of
All lease restrictions with respect to applications the Northern Shan States (La Touche, 1913). Other
for licenses were removed, and the government early geologic studies include Bleeck (1908), Fer-
simply collected 10 rupees per month from each mor (1930, 1931, 1932, 1934, and 1935), and Heron
miner to cover the cost of a license that the miner (1936 and 1937). Chhibber (1934a) includes a de-
"was to wear on the seat of his pants" (Halford- scription of the gem gravels in his work on the
Watkins, 1932). Local mining continued except geology of Burma.
from May 1942 to March 1945, when the Japanese Systematic mapping of the Mogok Stone Tract
occupied Burma and the Mogok tract became part on a scale of 4 inches = 1 mile was started in 1929
of the battleground of the United States Fourteenth and published by Brown (1933). Much more exten-
Army and the Japanese. After World War II, local sive mapping was continued by Iyer (1953). This
mining prospered until the nationalization of the work, by far the most complete on the Mogok area,
mines by the Socialist regime in 1963. resulted in a superb map of the deposit (Fig. 6-4).
When the Burmese government nationalized As is the case with all tropical areas, the geo-
all industries in 1963, it forbade all private busi- logic mapping of Mogok was difficult. The geologist
nesses, including gem mining and selling. Today, must not only contend with dense vegetation and
the diminished gem mining is monitored by the numerous wild animals but also study rocks that
army, and gems can be sold legally only at the are covered with a thick mantle of soil and prod-
annual auction held in Rangoon by the MYANMA ucts 'of deep chemical weathering. In the Mogok
Export Import Corporation, whose subdivision is area, annual rainfall is more than 360 cm (140
the Burma Gems, Jade, and Pearl Emporium. These inches).
auctions have not been highly successful because The geology of the Mogok area is very complex,
of the generally poor quality of the stones offered. consisting primarily of high-grade metamorphic
The total sales figures from the annual gem empo- schists and gneisses; granite intrusives, including
rium, as published by the Minerals Yearbook, give gem-bearing pegmatites; peridot-bearing ultra-
some idea of modem production. In 1969, the Fifth mafic rocks; and, most importantly, ruby- and
Annual Gem Emporium yielded $2,400,000. This spinel-bearing metamorphic marble.
figure rose dramatically in 1973 to $5,800,000, the The rubies of Mogok are weathered from the
last year for which statistics are available, but this marble of the area, which is in contact or interbed-
sum represents mostly income from sales of jade ded with a complex series of highly folded gneissic
and pearls, with very few rubies having been of- rocks. Iyer (1953) identified 13 mappable rock units
fered. in the Mogok area. These, however, can be, and
Early production records are difficult to find often are, grouped into: (1) intrusive granitic rocks;
and generally incomplete. According to Iyer (1953), (2) the Mogok gneiss, which consists of metamor-
in a table of production statistics for the Burma phic schists and gneisses; (3) the Pleistocene and
Ruby Mines, Ltd., 1,300,000 carats of ruby were re- recent (Quaternary) alluvium; (4) ultramafic intru-
covered from 1924 to 1939. As usual with gem-pro- sives; and (5) marbles.
duction statistics, how much additional material The Mogok gneiss is the prevalent rock unit in
was recovered by highgraders and operators of pri- the region. It consists of many types of metamor-
vate claims is not known. phic rocks, including scapolite- and gamet-rich
According to Nordland (1982), the Mogok area biotite gneisses, calc-granulites, quartzites, garnet-
is off-limits to foreigners and closed even to Bur- and sillimanite-rich gneisses, and hornblende
mese without special permission. A division of Bur- schists and gneisses. The Mogok gneiss makes up
SCALE
INDIAN
OCEAN
D INTRUSIVE
GRANITES
CRYSTALLINE
~'i~WE
~ OIPS
Figure 6-4. Detailed geologic map of the Mogok Stone Tract of Burma, adapted from the
original drawn by Clegg and Iyer (Jyer, 1953).
the eastern two-thirds of the area mapped by Clegg erite noted in abundance in certain of these bodies.
and Iyer (Iyer, 1953). The marbles, which are the Iyer (1953) states that the two topaz crystals weigh-
host rocks of the rubies and spinels, are intimately ing about 5 kg each were kept in the office of the
interbedded with the Mogok gneiss. Rounded frag- Burma Geologic Survey. Such gem minerals, along
ments of the Mogok gneiss are a major constituent with large quartz crystals, were generally sold to
of the gem gravels. Because of the heary rainfall Chinese traders for carving.
and tropical climate of the region, the Mogok In the Mogok area, basic intrusives are very rare
gneiss weathers very quickly to a reddish lateritic and limited to gabbros and hornblende-pyroxene
soil, leaving only rounded boulder remnants. rocks, as well as to peridotites found as minor in-
The granitic intrusives in the Mogok area form trusive dikes and sills principally in the Bernard-
most of the western third of the stone tract. On mya area about 10 km north of Mogok. These rocks
Clegg and Iyer's detailed geologic map (Iyer, 1953), are of minor importance, except when they are the
they consist of the Kabaing granite, an augite and source of the spectacular Burmese gem peridot,
hornblende granite, a syenite, and a tourmaline which rivals that from Zabargad (St. John's Island),
granite. Pegmatites containing topaz, tourmaline, Egypt. The peridotite in the Bernardmyo area is a
and aquamarine are also included in this map unit. light-colored, granular rock composed almost en-
Many small exposures of granitic rock have been tirely of olivine with minor pyroxene and magnetite
included in the unclassified crystallines of the (lyer, 1953). In the peridot diggings, the rock is gen-
Mogok gneiss. erally seen only as a series of loose, weathered
Of the granitic intrusives mapped by Clegg and boulders with serpentinization along fracture sur-
Iyer, the Kabaing granite is by far the most impor- faces. Also included as a minor map unit along
tant and one of the largest rock units in the area. It with the ultramafic intrusives is a small outcrop of
is found in workings throughout the Mogok area, nepheline syenite about 12 km west of Mogok.
and much of the gravel encountered in the allu- The marble is generally very coarsely crystal-
vium is undoubtedly derived from this granite. lized and pure white in color, although locally it
The Kabaing granite contains numerous may be tinged with yellow or pink. In addition to
quartz- and topaz-bearing pegmatites, with cassit- ruby and spinel, the marble contains diopside,
phlogopite, forsterite, chondrodite, scapolite, Mining Methods

sphene, gamet, and graphite. The marble has been After the departure of the British and their modem
intruded by granitic rocks, and the effects of con- mining techniques, Burmese mining was very ac-
tact metamorphism are evidenced by the presence tive, with operations varying in size from single op-
of feldspar and diopside in very coarse-grained erators to mines employing two to three dozen
portions that are in contact with the granitic rocks. workers.
La Touche (1913) included the marbles as part The indigenous mining methods used at
of the Mogok gneiss; Iyer (1953) chose to place the Mogok have been described in great detail (Simp-
marbles in the "Mogok Series," restricting the son, 1922; Adams, 1926; Halford-Watkins, 1932; Iyer,
Mogok gneiss to gneisses and unclassified crystal- 1953; Spaulding, 1956; Ehrmann, 1957; Meen, 1962;
line rocks. These unclassified crystalline rocks con- GObelin, 1965). The three most common mining
sist of gneisses, granites, and quartz veins that, methods described by these authors include the
because of the thick soil horizon and dense jungle, twinlon (twin), the hmyadwin (hmyaw), and the
could not be mapped as separate units. loodwin (loo).
In the valleys and on the sides of the hills, the A twinlon, usually constructed in the dry sea-
gem-bearing gravel layer rests on a soft, decom- son, consists of a small circular pit that in general
posed rock of characteristic appearance. This gem- is less than 1 m in diameter (Fig. 6-5). These pits
bearing bed consists for the most part of brown or are commonly 6 to 12 m deep, although some as
yellow, more or less firm, clayey, and at times deep as 30 m have been reported (Halford-Watkins,
sandy material, known locally as byon (Cecil, 1928). 1932). The pits are dug vertically until the gem
This layer, the residuum left by solution of the mar- gravel or byon is reached. The miners then dig lat-
ble during weathering, contains ruby, sapphire, erally for about a 10- to 12-m radius to remove the
and other varieties of colored corundum, as well as gem-bearing gravel. The pits are illuminated by
spinel, quartz, tourmaline, feldspar grains, nodules means of a mirror from above. Commonly, three
of weathered pyrite, and other minerals of lesser men work in a single twinlon: Two men dig while
importance. Rarely, a pure gem sand occurs; it con- the third uses a long bamboo crane with a basket
sists almost entirely of minute, sparkling grains of attached to haul up the earth. This method is not
ruby. The byon lies, as a rule, from 5 to 6 m below unlike that employed at the Ban Kha Cha sapphire
the surface of the valley floor and is from 1 to 2 m deposit near Chanthaburi, Thailand (Chapter 5;
in thickness, pinching off to nil. On the sides of the Keller, 1983). Occasionally, when water is a prob-
valley, the beds of byon are as thick as 15 to 22 m. lem, a lebin, that is, a 1- to 2-meter-square pit, is
These are, of course, purely residual weathering constructed and reinforced with timber. Water is
deposits (Chhibber, 1934a). removed via a bamboo pump. The recovered gem
Fi[1lre 6-5. A twinlon, or

circular pit, from which
gem-bearing gravel is
removed via the basket
attached to the long
bamboo crane shown here.
Photo by Edward Giibelin.
96 Gemstones Fonned by Low-Pressure Regional MetamOIvhism
gravels are then carefully washed and sorted on stalagmites. Such caverns, called loodwins or loos,
the smface. may also contain some of the richest gem gravels
The second most common method of recover- in the Mogok Stone Tract. Unfortunately, mining in
ing gems at Mogok is by means of a quarrylike these caverns is the most dangerous of the three
hmyadwin, or hmyaw. These open-pit mines are methods. A miner must find a way through vel)'
usually worked during the rainy season, because narrow channels in the limestone while digging in
they employ hydraulic mining and require a great evel)' crevice for gem gravel, which is put in a bas-
deal of water. A hmyadwin is dug into a hillside to ket dragged on one foot. When the baf~:et is full, it
a depth of 6 to 15 m. Hmyadwins are usually used is brought to the surface and the gravel is washed.
continuously for 50 to 60 years because of their Because of natural concentration in the laos, such
vel)' complicated construction. They val)' greatly gravel may contain up to 25% ruby (Chhibber,
in size, but the most complex uses a series of chan- 1934b). However, miners not uncommonly get
nels to bring in water from great distances to wash stuck in the rocks or lost underground. Because of
the soil and gem gravels removed from open-pit this danger, as well as the depletion of accessible
mining on the hillside. The gravels and much laos, this method has been used only rarely in re-
lighter wastes are washed into flat, circular stone cent years.
pits, where the "heavies" are trapped in a series of As is the practice in most of the gem-producing
sluices. The lighter wastes are washed into the val- areas of the world, once the miner finishes pro-
ley below. During operation, large pebbles are cessing the gravel and abandons it, it is freely avail-
picked out and discarded, and the sluices are pe- able to the small independent miner (Fig. 6-7), who
riodically inspected for gems (Fig. 6-6). may reprocess it in the hope of finding overlooked
Deep chemical weathering in the limestone gem material. In the case of Mogok, however, only
areas of Mogok produces typical karst topography, women are allowed to search for gems in such re-
including numerous underground caverns that fuse. These women, called kanase, usually recover
may go for hundreds of meters and contain huge only enough from the debris to live on, but they
chambers lined with spectacular stalactites and have been known to recover large gems.
Figure 6-6. A recovery and washing plant for gem gravels near Mogok. Photo by Edward
Giibelin.
Famous Rubies from Mogok bies were placed on the market. After cutting, these
stones weighed 32.35 and 38.55 carats. Seldom have
Unlike diamond, emerald, and sapphire, fine, well- two such remarkable and perfect rubies appeared
publicized, faceted Burmese rubies are almost un- on the European market simultaneously. These
known. In fact, few if any named rubies are in the two stones brought 10,000 pounds and 20,000
museums or royal treasuries of the world today. pounds, respectively. At the time, many regarded
Gemological literature of the twentieth century this incident as only an indicator of the quality and
does note a handful of stones exceeding 5 carats, size of the gems that the ruling houses of these
but with the exception of two-the 43-carat Peace eastern empires must possess. Yet, when the Brit-
ruby and the approximately 40-carat Chhatrapati ish conquered and annexed Burma, they found lit-
Manick (Clarke, 1933)-no others were significant tle or no evidence of vast stores of corundum gems,
enough to bear names, and even the whereabouts although the possibility exists that all the royal
of the two named stones is unknown today. gems were stolen during the conquest of the coun-
In 1875, owing to the impoverished condition try, by both the Burmese and the British (Brown,
of the ruling house of Burma, two spectacular ru- 1934).
Figure 6-7. As is the case in most gem-mining operations, the waste from the major
mining operations is freely available to independent miners for sorting. In Burma,
however, this sorting is limited to females, known locally as kanase. Photo by Edward
Giibelin.
98 Gemstones Formed by Low-Pressure Re,gional Metamorphism
Figure 6-8. One of the finest Burmese ruby crystals ever Figure 6-9. This 15.97-carat cushion-cut ruby from the
placed on public display is this 196.1-carat etched Mogok Stone Tract is considered to be one of the finest
crystal, which is now part of the Hi;wn collection of the Burmese rubies known today. Photo © 1988 Tina
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. Photo by Hammid.
Years later, in 1899, a 77-carat rough ruby was tory Museum of Los Angeles County displays the
discovered by Burma Ruby Mines, Ltd. The mo~t 196.1-carat Hixon ruby (Fig. 6-8). This highly etched
famous Burma ruby was found on Armistice Day, crystal is of superb color and possesses unusually
November 11, 1918. Two English mine supervisors complete crystal form. Allan Caplan, a New York
spotted the stone on the washing pan and called gem dealer, had a magnificent 15.97-carat faceted
for the mine's general manager, who subsequently Burma ruby that many believe is one of the finest
named it the Peace ruby (Keely, 1982). The 43-carat rubies of its kind. It is exceptionally free of flaws
crystal reportedly was purchased by a wealthy and has the classic pigeon blood color (Fig. 6-9). It
Mogok stone merchant who cut it into a 22-carat was displayed at the American Museum of Natural
flawless stone. Unfortunately, its color tone was History in New York and recently sold at auction
slightly dark, and the cut gem sold for less than the for the highest price per carat of any colored gem-
dealer had paid for the crystal. Since the discovery stone in history.
ofthe Chhatrapati Manick and the Peace Ruby, sev-
eral stones of nearly 30 carats have been found,
although none has received a special name that
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ords of the Geological Survey of India 65(11:80-86, and petrogenesis of a corundum-bearing marble at
90-95. Hunza (Kashmire). Mineralium Deposita 11:278-297.
Fermor, L. L. 1932. The Mogok stone tract, Katha district. ROY, B. C. 1955. Emerald deposits in Mewar and Ajmer
Records of the Geological Survey of India 66(1):92- Merwara. Records of the Geological Survey of India
96. 86:377-401.
Fermor, L. L. 1934. Mogok stone tract. Records of the Scott, W. H. 1936. The ruby mines of Burma. Gems &
Geological Survey of India 68( 1) :50-58. Gemology 2(1):3-6.
Fermor, L. L. 1935. Mogok stone tract. Records of the Simpson, R. R. 1922. Notes on a visit to the Burma ruby
Geological Survey of India 69(1):50-54. mines. Transactions of the Mining and Geological In-
Gordon, R. 1888. On the ruby mines near Mogok, Burma. stitute 17(1) :42-58.
Proceedings of the Royal Geographic Society 10:261- Sinkankas, J. 1976. Gemstones of North America. 2 vols.
275. Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York.
Gubelin, E. 1965. The ruby mines in Mogok, Burma. Jour- Sinkankas, J. 1981. Emerald and Other Beryls. Chilton
nal of Gemmology 9(12):411-427. Book Co., Radnor, Pa. 665 pages.
Gubelin, E. 1974. The emerald deposit at Lake Manyara, Spaulding, D. L. 1956. The ruby mines of Mogok, Burma.
Tanzania. The Lapidary Journal, No.5. Gems & Gemology 8(11):335-342.
Gubelin, E. 1982. Gemstones of Pakistan: Emerald, ruby, Spencer, L. J. 1933. Nation acquires large ruby. Gemmol-
and spinel. Gems & Gemology 1813):123-139. ogist 2(18):176-178.
Halford-Watkins, J. F. 1932. Methods of ruby mining in Webster, R. 1975. Gems: Their Sources, Descriptions, and
Burma. Gemmologist 1(11):335-342; 12:367-373. Identification. 3d ed. Butterworths, London.
Heron, A. M. 1936. Mogok stone tract. Records of the Geo- Wynne, T. T. 1897. The ruby mines of Burma. Transac-
logical Survey of India 71(11:58-63. tions of the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy 5:161-
Heron, A. M. 1937. Age of Mogok series. Records of the 175.
Geological Survey of India 72(11:62.
7
Gemstones Formed by
High-Pressure Regional
Metamorphism: The Jadeite
Deposits of Tawmaw, Burma
Two tough, compact, fine-grained materials, jade- Fonned by high-pressure regional metamorphism
ite and nephrite, are fonns of the gem material (Fig. 7-2), it can display a variety of colors due to
jade. Composition by itself, however, does not de- trace amounts of elements such as chromium and
fine jade. It must also have a texture that gives it iron or inclusions of other minerals such as he-
extreme toughness. Despite their similar proper- matite.
ties, jadeite and nephrite are distinct materials High-pressure regional metamorphism occurs
with different compositions and textures. where rocks are subjected to very deep burial but
Jadeite (sodium aluminum silicate) is a mineral relatively low temperature. The minerals formed
belonging to the group called pyro«enes. Nephrite under these conditions are quite different from
belongs to the amphibole mineral group and those fanned during low-pressure regional meta-
ranges between the amphibolite tremolite (calcium morphism. Jadeite jade is the only important gem-
magnesium silicate) and actinolite (calcium iron stone of this group.
silicate). Traditionally, the term "jade" is often in- When the ocean floor slides under the edge of
correctly applied to any massive green stone suit- a continent, it is subjected to very high pressure,
able for carving. Nephrite is the product of low- but the temperatures remain low because the
pressure regional or contact metamorphism. It ocean floor starts out quite cool. During the pro-
consists of microscopic interlocking fibrous crys- cess, which occurs over millions of years, the ba-
tals (Fig. 7-1). salts of the ocean floor are broken off and pushed
Jadeite jade is a very tough mineral composed back to the earth's surface fonning high-pressure
of many tiny, interlocking, granular crystals. recrystallization (Fig. 7-3). The resulting rocks are
101
102 Gemstones Formed by High-Pressure Regional Metamorphism
Figure 7-1. A thin section of nephrite shows interwoven Figure 7-2. A thin section ofjadeite shows many
fibrous crystals magnified 100 times. Photo courtesy of interlocking granular crystals. Magnified 100 times.
the Smithsonian Institution (NMNH #R677S). Photo courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution (NMNH
#94303).
defined as glaucophane schists or blueschists. fecture, in Japan, but it is of poor quality (Chihara,
Characterized by the stability of the jadeite-quartz 1971; Iwao, 1953). Similar jadeite was recently re-
assemblage and glaucophane, these rocks are geo- ported from the Ural and Borus Mountains in the
logically limited to compressional zones associated Soviet Union (Desautels, 1986). Jadeite of mineral-
with lithospheric plate boundaries where subduc- ogical interest has been discovered in several coun-
tion and obduction are active. Experimental work ties in California. In the mid-1930s boulders and
on blueschist minerals including jadeite and glau- nodules of jadeite in serpentinite noted earlier
cophane suggest necessary pressures as high as 5 were found near Clear Creek in southwestern San
to 7 kilobars and temperatures of about 150° to Benito County, California, with pumpellyite and
300°C. The typical reaction is jadeite plus quartz lawsonite. Similar occurrences were since noted in
equals albite. Jadeite can form at somewhat lower Mendocino, Trinity, San Luis Obispo, and Sonoma
pressures in the absence of quartz, but as Turner counties, all in glaucophane schists. Mineralogi-
(1981) points out, pure jadeite as a tectonic block is cally interesting specimens of jadeite occur along
quite rare and best documented from Clear Creek the Russian River near Cloverdale in Sonoma
in San Benito County, California. At Clear Creek County.
jadeite forms nongem blocks up to 2 meters across More important occurrences of jadeite have
and is completely enclosed in serpentinite. It is been found in the Celebes (DeRoever, 1955) and in
always associated with albite but never quartz. Guatemala (Foshag, 1957; Foshag et al., 1955). Pre-
Turner (1981) suggests that the silica may be lost to Columbian jadeite artifacts have been found
enclosing serpentinite that acts as a silica sink. throughout Central America and Mexico for many
This sort of desilication reaction could produce years, but the source was unknown. In the 1950s,
pure jadeite from albite. This is the condition ob- however, an outcrop of in situ jadeite was found
served in the Tawmaw, Burma, area. above the village of Manzanal in Guatemala. Recent
Jadeite occurrences are quite rare on a world- work has confirmed this observation and found
wide basis, particularly jadeite of gem quality. Scat- other outcrops on the north side of the Motagua
tered reports of jadeite in Yunnan Province, China, River, particularly along the valley of the Palmilla
and in Tibet probably represent trading centers for River, a tributary of the Motagua (McBirney et al.,
material coming out of Burma. Jadeite has been 1967). Recently, outcrops have also been noted
observed near the village of Kotaki in Niigata Pre- west of the Palmilla River stretching all the way to
The Jadeite Deposits of Tawmaw, Burma 103
Access to the area has always been limited to

unimproved roads that are usable only during the
dl)' season, which usually extends from March
through May. Mule and horses are still the most
efficient means of transportation, although Jeeps
have been used to reach some areas. Since the So-
cialist government took power in 1963, few if any
Westerners have visited the Tawmaw area. Meen
(1962) gives a detailed account of what a visit to the
region entailed during what was possibly the last
visit by a Westerner to the area.
History
Nephrite jade has been sought after and revered by
the Chinese for thousands of years. Not until the
late eighteenth centul)' did the rarer jadeite jade
begin to make an impact on the Chinese jade mar-
ket, even though jadeite was reportedly recovered
Figure 7-3. Diagram showing process of high-pressure
regional metamorphism. Courtesy of the Natural History from the Tawmaw area as "serpentinite" since the
Museum of Los Angeles County. thirteenth centul)'. Details of its discovel)' are un-
certain. According to Scalisi and Cook (1983), a
Yunnanese trader inadvertently used a jadeite
the Huijo River (Desautels, 1986). The only major boulder to balance his mule's load while crossing
deposit of gem-quality jadeite occurs in the Taw- the Burma-China frontier. Reportedly, "jadeite"
maw area of northern Burma, however. trickled into China from Burma for the next 500
years. If this is true, its impact was minimal be-
cause Chinese carvings of jadeite predating the late
eighteenth centul)' are unknown. In the 1780s the
THE JADEITE DEPOSITS jadeite trade between Burma and China began on
OF TAWMAW, BURMA
a significant scale. Although its beginnings are ob-
scure, in the latter part of the eighteenth centul)'
Location and Access
the influx of jadeite into the imperial lapidaries of
The Hpakan-Tawmaw jade tract is the most impor- China was substantial. This influx was possibly the
tant jadeite-producing area in the world (Gubelin, result of the extended domination of the Ch'ing
1965, 1976). It is situated in the Kachin Hills of the dynasty emperor into Yunnan Province in south-
far western Myitkyina district of northern Burma, western China and over the Burmese border into
about 70 miles northwest of the town of Mogaung, Kachin territol)', and the jadeite was a tribute paid
an important jade-cutting and trading center, and to the Chinese emperor. This jadeite jade became
approximately 120 miles north of Mandalay. The known as new jade to distinguish it from the well-
approximately 800-square-mile mining area is established nephrite jade of China's Kunlun Moun-
bounded on the east by the Uru River and the west tains (Ng and Root, 1984). This new jade was
by the Chindwin River. The north and south are quickly adopted by the Qing dynasty emperor
bounded by the twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth par- Qianlong (1736-1796) who preferred the rich,
allels of latitude, respectively (Soe-Win, 1968). The bright colors of jadeite over the more subdued col-
center of the mining area is the village of Tawmaw, ors of nephrite. By the nineteenth centul)', jadeite,
situated on a 1,500- to 2,OOO-foot-high plateau that particularly the rich chromium-green variety
extends for about 10 miles in a north-south direc- known as imperial jade, became highly sought
tion but is less than one mile wide. Of the many after.
individual mines in the area, the most important Detailed accounts of the mining activity in the
are the Khaisumaw, Merchant, Chater, and the Yih- Tawmaw area during the late eighteenth and early
kumaw group of mines. All of these mines are re- nineteenth centuries are almost unknown. The
covering jadeite from primal)' deposits. Alluvial first Europeans known to visit the area were a Cap-
mining also takes place in the neighborhood of tain Hannay (1837) and a Dr. Griffith (1847). Both
Tawmaw Hill and in the portion of the Uru River men published their accounts, although Dr. Griffith
flanking Tawmaw Hill. was the first to note the mining activity. He noted
in his 1846 visit that trenches up to 20 feet deep sene cans were replaced by mechanized steam
were dug in a boulder conglomerate to recover pumps to dewater the mines after the rainy season.
rounded boulders of jadeite. Interestingly, jadeite In more recent years, dynamite and drills have also
jade was not described as a separate species until been introduced. In 1934 Chhibber reported that
1863. Damour (1863, 1881) reported that jadeite was one large mine designated "Dwingyi" existed at
a member of the pyroxene group of minerals, Tawmaw; it consisted of six shafts and numerous
whereas nephrite jade was an amphibole. The in tunnels. The shafts were named after the people
situ deposits of jadeite were not yet known. In 1892 who dug them. A smaller mine, Kadon dwin, run
the first geologist to visit the jadeite mines, Noet- by C. W. Chater of the Burchin Syndicate, had a 50-
ling (1893), reported on the geology and occurrence foot vertical shaft of the jadeite dike . The industry
of jadeite. His samples were later described by was declining to 50 or 60 miners by the early 1930s.
Bauer (1895). Given the hostile terrain and gen-
erally primitive conditions, his work was remark-
ably thorough and today remains the basis for our
General Geology
knowledge of the geology of the area. He noted that
in situ jadeite was discovered just 15 years before Of the numerous early geologic studies and map-
his March 1892 visit, suggesting a discovery of 1877 ping of the Hpakan-Tawmaw jade tract (Noetling,
for the jadeite-albite dikes. Noetling's work was ex- 1893; Bauer, 1895; Bleeck, 1908; Lacroix, 1930; Fig.
panded upon by later visits by Bleeck (1908) and 7-4), the most detailed and important were those
Chhibber (1934a, 1934b). Surprisingly little changed of Chhibber (1934a, 1934b) and most recently Soe-
in the area between these visits, except that kero- Win (1968). Soe-Win (1968) used the work of Chhib-
Scale 01 miles x Jadeire ou rcrops

o 3 5
I
! I
Andesires
Basalr
Mabaw Siliceous Aggromerare
Uru Boulder Conglomerare
Alrered Picri/es. erc.. wi rh
Volcan ic Breccia
Granodiori re
Terriaries
Iron ores and blocks 01
Siliceous Vo lcanic Breccia
I}}~:~q 10 Serpenl inised Periodorites Figure 7-4. Detailed geologic
~" Crysra lline Schists Map of the TawmawJade
•••• Mines (adaptedfrom Soe-Win,
'(---..'\/''1. 12 Limestone
~~_::.J.:::::""::~_ _ _--====-":"-~--------' 1968).
ber (1934a) to apply the geology of the deposit to Occurrence of Jadeite in Burma
more effective mining operations. Due to extremely
Jadeite is principally found at three locations in the
thick jungle and inhospitable conditions, geologic
Kachin Hills of northern Burma: at Tawmaw, at
work has been exceedingly difficult. The oldest
Hweka, and at Mamon. Each of these three loca-
rocks in the area are the Permian-Carboniferous
tions exhibits a different mode of occurrence for
plateau limestones assigned by Chhibber (1934b),
jadeite. At Tawmaw, by far the most important
which commonly form bedrock. The plateau lime-
jadeite occurrence, jadeite and albite occur in situ
stone is generally crystalline where it has been in-
as dikes within a serpentinized peridotite (Fig. 7-5).
vaded by plutonic rocks such as granite. In fact,
Chhibber (1934a) placed the age of these dikes as
rubies have been reported near such contacts in
early Tertiary. At Hweka, jadeite occurs as rounded
the Tawmaw area (Bleeck, 1908). The age of the
alluvial boulders in the Pleistocene age Uru con-
plateau limestone was determined by marker fos-
glomerate. In the Mamon area, alluvial jadeite boul-
sils such as Foraminifera. Locally, the limestone
ders are recovered from the Uru riverbed and from
has undergone metosomatic replacement, partic-
minor tributaries in the area.
ularly silica replacement. These early studies re-
A total of four jadeite-albite dikes were de-
vealed that the most important rock units of the
scribed by Chhibber (1934a). These four dikes are
area, however, consist principally of serpentinized
parallel to subparallel and extend for a total of ap-
peridotite of late Cretaceous age that have intruded
proximately 4 miles. These include the TaWIllaw
a series of crystalline schists, including chlorite,
dike, which extends in a northeast-southwest di-
actinolite, kyanite, graphite, and glaucophane
rection for a distance of about 300 m; the Mienmaw
schists. These rocks extend as one continuous
dike, which runs north-south for approximately 2.5
mass from the Uru River below Mamon northward
km; the Pangmaw dike running northwest to
above Kansi (Chhibber, 1934a). Typically, these per-
southeast for about 1.5 km; and the Namshamaw
idotites are dunites that have been partially to to-
dike, which is believed to be an extension of the
tally serpentinized and mantled by a thick horizon
Pangmaw dike. These jadeite-albite dikes consist
of lateritic soil. The crystalline schists are really a mostly of these two minerals, but also contain
continuous series of metamorphic rocks, as noted
glaucophane, the amphibole actinolite, and typi-
above. These schists are overlain by sandstones
cally possess a border zone of soft, green
and conglomerates of Tertiary age. The Uru boul-
der conglomerates, of Pleistocene age, are very
important economically, because they contain
boulders of jadeite that have weathered out of jade-
ite albite dikes in the peridotite.
Granite of Tertiary age makes up a large por-
tion of the district, where it forms typically a rolling
topography. Chhibber (1934a) considers the granite
to be so extensive that it could be considered a
batholith. This same igneous event may have given
rise to the volcanic rocks in the area, including
"altered picrites" (basalts?), andesites, and agglom-
erates.
Chhibber (1934a) subdivided the Tertiary age
sediments into the Hkuma series of Oligocene-
Miocene age sandstones interbedded with shale,
Scale
locally carbonaceous, and the Namting series. The o 5 Feel
Namting series is Miocene-Pliocene in age and
EXPLANATION
forms great thicknesses of sandstones, shales, and
F;~~j
.." , Serpent ine. country rock G A l bite
conglomerates. Fossil plant material has been ob-
served in the latter.
~~~~, Ta lc-chlorite schist ~ Jadeite
Late Tertiary plutonic rocks have also been ob- Sheared zone
served, including minor outcrops of gabbros that
intrude the Tertiary sediments, granodiorites, and
C§J Streaks of chromite
quartz diorites. Figure 7-5. Generalized cross-section ofjadeite

The Uru boulder conglomerate and recent al- occurrences near Tawmaw, Burma (adapted from Soe-
luvium are discussed in detail later in this chapter. Win, 1968).
106 Gemstones Formed by High-Pressure Regional Meulmorphislll
Figure 7-6. Miningjadeite near Tamnaw, Burma. Photo by Edward Giibelin.
"chlorite" (Bleeck, 1908). Chhibber (1934a) reex- These deposits are relatively minor in extent and
amined the border zone and determined the are best observed near the towns of Lonkin, Kansi,
"chlorite" to actually be calcite, jadeite, and and Hweka.
"serpentinous" minerals. More significant are the recent alluvial deposits
The most important alluvial jadeite deposits of jadeite found in the bed of the Uru River itself.
are found in the Uru boulder conglomerate, possi- Jadeite is recovered as rounded boulders in the
bly Pleistocene; named by Chhibber (1934a) after debris of the Uru River for about 15 to 20 miles
the river that was responsible for its formation, downstream from the village of Sanka to the
it ranges in width from 3 km to 6 km maximum Mamon area. This stretch of river flanks Tawmaw
at Mamon and may obtain thicknesses exceeding Hill, which contains the primary jadeite deposits;
300 m. Rounded jadeite boulders occur in the con- no jadeite is found in the river above Sanka, and
glomerate along with equally rounded boulders of very little jadeite is recovered below Mamon. All of
crystalline schists, serpentinite, and rocks repre- the small tributaries that feed the Uru, from the
senting all the older rock units of the area. Typi- plateau that makes up Tawmaw Hill, contain jade-
cally, these boulders are poorly cemented by a ite. These so-called river mines are by far the oldest
lateritic clay. According to Soe-Win (1968), a typical and contain the finest-quality jadeite (Noetling,
cross-section of the Uru boulder conglomerate 1893). When Bleeck visited the area in 1907, the
consists of three horizons resting on bedrock: the jadeite recovery was limited in the riverbed to the
basal jadeite-bearing conglomerate overlain by a area around Mamon and the workings as far north
layer of pebbles and gravel, and a capping of allu- as Sanka had been abandoned. Nowadays, the jad-
vium. Jadeite boulders are also found in the Tertia- eite recovery is centered around Hpakan (Giibelin,
ries, a generalized term for alluvial sandstones. personal communication).
Mining Methods toughness, however, chisels and even pneumatic

drills are relatively ineffective. The more primitive
The mining methods in the Tawmaw area are rea- method of fire setting has been very effective, how-
sonably primitive (Fig. 7-6) and, of course, differ in ever. The rock face is heated in this method; when
the recovery of jadeite from the dike versus the sufficiently hot, it is quickly cooled by splashing
alluvium. When a dike was found on the surface, it water onto the hot rocks. The thermal shock frac-
was followed underground until flooding pre- tures the rocks, which can then be more easily
vented further development. Prior to the 1930s, worked with hammer and crowbars.
buckets or kerosene cans were used to dewater the The alluvial mining from the recent riverbed
mines. Since the 1930s, mechanical steam pumps and older conglomerates consists simply of remov-
have been employed effectively to allow deeper ing overburden and exposing the basal jadeite-
mine development. Due to jadeite's tremendous bearing layer in the conglomerate (Fig. 7-7). Accord-
Figure 7-7. Overview of the alluvial mining near Tawmaw, Burma. Photo by Edward Giibelin.
108 Gemstones Formed by High-Pressurt' Regional Mt'tamorphism
ing to Soe-Win (1968), this is done by simple pit jadeites, and the debris is dumped to the side. Ma-
mining, that is, by digging small pits to depths of terial is then sent to Mogaung for cutting (Fig. 7-8) .
6 m or more through very hard ground. When the
jadeite-bearing gravel is reached, the boulders are Important Jadeite Collections
sorted and inspected by hand. During the dry sea- Identifying a few examples of jadeite as the world's
son from December to May, miners commonly finest is exceedingly difficult. Individual pieces are
mine the recent streambeds themselves. This en- generally part of large collections that are domi-
tails building a dam of bamboo, rock, and earth. nated by the much more common nephrite jade,
The dam is constantly enlarged by the debris from especially if the collection contains an abundance
the mining operation. During mining, bamboo of pre-eighteenth-century material. Therefore,
hand pumps or diesel pumps are employed to pointing out the more important collections of
keep the area dewatered. Normally, four or five Chinese jade is perhaps better, with the assump-
men work a claim at one time. During the rainy tion that these collections also contain some very
season, ground sluicing in the surrounding hill- fine examples of jadeite.
sides becomes a popular means of mining jadeite. Saying which one collection is the world's fin-
An area of mining is selected and water is then est is also difficult. Many of China's treasures were
ground sluiced in from a distant source and looted in the mid-nineteenth century, particularly
sprayed on the working area to remove topsoil and the 1860 looting of the Summer Palace, and found
conglomerates until bedrock is reached. As the their way to Europe and the United States, where
gravels are washed, they are sorted for boulders of they remain today. Still, by sheer volume, the finest
Figure 7-8. Cutting large jadeite boulder at Mogaung, Burma. Photo by Edward Giibelin.
The Jadeite Deposits of'l'awl1law, Burma 109
Figure 7-9. One of the finest el(amples ofjadeite is this el(traordinary 35-cm-high lavender
jadeite vase from the Ch'ing dynasty. It is part of the gem collection of the Smithsonian
Institution. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
110 Gemstones Formed by High-Pressure Regional MetamOlvhism
collection is probably in the National Palace Mu- sas City, Missouri; and, finally, the Smithsonian
seum in Taipei, Taiwan. Museum of Natural History, which has a superb
In Europe, the largest collections of Chinese collection of 140 pieces donated in 1959 by Ed-
jade are in the British Museum, the Victoria and mund C. Monell and also the very important Freer
Albert Museum, and the Fitzwilliam Museum at collection.
Cambridge, and the Bauer Collection in Geneva From these collections and other private col-
(Giibelin, personal communication). lections, a few jadeite pieces do stand out. The
The Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Can- Smithsonian Institution has a 14-inch-high jade
ada, has a collection of more than 1,000 pieces of dragon vase of very fine lavender jade that was do-
Chinese jade. nated by Marjorie Merriweather Post (Fig. 7-9). The
In the United States, the Avery Brundage col- Crystalite Corporation Collection in Arizona has
lection of Chinese jade housed in the DeYoung several very fine examples of jadeite, including a
Museum in San Francisco is possibly the most significant necklace of "imperial" green beads (Fig.
comprehensive jade collection in the world. The 7-10) and other significant jadeite calVings (Figs. 7-
Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection in the Seattle 11 and 7-12). The Natural History Museum of Los
Art Museum is also considered to be among the Angeles County has a particularly fine imperial
top collections, at least in the United States. Other jade calVing in its Hixon collection (Fig. 7-13).
major collections can be found in the Lizzadro Mu- The Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art has sev-
seum in Oak Park, Illinois; the Bishop Collection in eral outstanding examples of calVed jadeite, in-
the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; the cluding a 14Vz-inch-high lavender figure of guanyin
Fogg Art Museum at HalVard in Boston; the John L. with yellow bamboo; a 21%-inch-high pagoda in-
and Helen Kellog Hall exhibition in the Field Mu- cense burner; and a 7%-inch-diameter pair of deep
seum in Chicago; the Nelson Gallery of Art in Kan- green jadeite bowls.
Figure 7-10. E;>ctraordinary imperial jadeite necklace and Figure 7-11. Afire-breathing dragon is carved in high
earrings from the J. and E. Greenspan collection. Photo relief on this 12-cm-high, late-nineteenth-century jadeite
by Harold and Erica Van Pelt. vessel from the J. and E. Greenspan collection. Photo by
Figure 7-12. This nineteenth-century jadeite carving is an outstanding example of the

Chinese use of color and symbolism injade. It measures approximately 12.5 by 10 cm.
From the J. and E. Greenspan collection. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
Figure 7-13. The most-sought after variety ofjadeite, which was historically reservedfor
nobility, is rich green imperial jadeite. This particularly fine, approximately 25-carat
carving isfrom the Hixon Collection of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles
County. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
REFERENCES Giibelin, E. 1965. Jade albit-ein neuer Schmuckstein aus

Burma. Zt. dt. Gemmol. Ges. Heft. 51:4-22.
Giibelin, E. 1976. Jadeite, der griine Schatz aus Burma.
Bauer, M. 1895. On the jadeite and other rocks from Taw- Lapis 3(2):17-28.
maw in upper Burma. Rec. Geol. Surv. India 28:91- Hannay, C. 1837. Journal of the Asiatic Soc. of Bengal
105. 6:265.
Bleeck, A. W. G. 1908. Jadeite in the Kachin Hills, upper Iwao, S. 1953. Albitite and associated jadeite rock from
Burma. Rec. Geol. Surv. India 36:254-285. Kataki District Japan: A study in ceramic raw mate-
Chhibber, H. L. 1934(a). The Mineral Resources of Burma. rial. Report of the Geological Survey of Japan 153.
Macmillan, London. Keverne, R. 1975. Jade: A review of the exhibition,at the
Chhibber, H. L. 1934(b). The Geology of Burma. Macmil- Victoria and Albert Museum, London. Arts of Asia
lan, London. 5(4).
Chihara, K. 1971. Mineralogy and Paragenesis of Jadeites Lacroix, A. 1930. La jadeite de Bermanie: Les roches
from the Omi-Kotaki Area, Central Japan. Mineral qu'elle constitute ou qui l'accompagnent: Composi-
Society of Japan, Tokyo, Special Paper l. tion et origine. Bulletin Societe Mineralogique
Damour, A. 1846. Analyse dur Jade oriental reunion de France 53.
cette substance a la Tremolite. Ann. Chem. Phys. McBirney, A. R., et al. 1967. Eclogites and jadeites from
3(16)469-474. the Motagua fault zone, Guatemala. American Min-
Damour, A. 1863. Notice et analyse sur Ie jade verte: Re- eralogist 52:908-918.
union de cettes matiere mineral a la famille werner- Meen, V. B. 1962. Jade in Burma. Lapidary Journal 816-
ites. Comptes Rendus 56:861-865. 835.
Damour, A. 1891. Nouvelles analyses sur la jadeite et sur Ng, J., and E. Root. 1984. Jade for You: Value Guide to Fine
quelques roches sodiferes. Bulletin Societe Mineral- Jewelry Jade. Jade and Gem Corp. of America. 107
ogique de France 4:156-160. pages.
DeRoever, W. F. 1955. Genesis of jadeite by low grade Noetling, F. 1893. Note on the occurrence of jadeite in
metamorphism. American Journal of Science the Union of Burma. Rec. Geol. Survey of India 26:26-
253:283-298. 31.
Desautels, P. E. 1986. The Jade Kingdom. Van Nostrand Scalisi, P., and D. Cook. 1983. Classic Mineral Localities of
Reinhold Company, New York. 118 pages. the World: Asia and Australia. Van Nostrand Rein-
Foshag, W. F. 1957. Mineralogical Studies in Guatemalan hold Company, New York. 226 pages.
Jade. u.S. National Museum Publication 4307. U.S. Soe-Win, U. 1968. The application of geology to the min-
National Museum, Washington, D.C. ing of jade. Union of Burma J. Sci. and Tech. 1:445-
Foshag, W. F., and R. Leslie. 1955. Jadeite from Manzanal, 446.
Guatemala. American Antiquity 21 :81-83. Turner, F. 1981. Metamorphic Petrology: Mineralogical,
Griffith. 1847. Journal of Travel in Assam, Burma. Butan, Field, and Tectonic Aspects. McGraw-Hill Book Com-
etc. Calcutta, 132. pany, New York. 524 pages.
PART IV
Gemstones Formed
at Great Depths
Chapter 8. Mantle Thrust Sheet Gem Deposits: The

Zabargad Island} Egypt} Peridot Deposits
Chapter 9. Diamond Pipes: The Diamond Deposits

of Argyle} Western Australia
115
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0'" ~amond
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_ PRP.t IER PIPE A
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KIMBERLEy DiamOnd Diamond
SO AFRICA
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D,amonCl Q
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Map 4. World distribution of important gem deposits brought from great depths.
A ll the gemstones that we have considered thus
far form within the earth's crust-the planet's
Nevertheless, geologic clues provide a good picture
of their nature.
thin outer shell. Two important gemstones, peridot Diamond-bearing deposits are most commonly
and diamond, form in the very thick layer of rock, composed of a rare rock, kimberlite, or of kimber-
called the mantle, between the crust of the earth lite like rocks like lamproites, which contain broken
and its metallic core. The mantle makes up 83 per- and somewhat rounded fragments of solid rock
cent of our planet's volume, but rarely do pieces of from both the mantle and the crust. The deposits
it reach the surface. are in the form of narrow vertical tubes called
Compressive forces acting on areas where the pipes, which flare out into a cone shape near the
earth's crust is thin may produce thrust sheets, surface and may be as much as several thousand
where a slice of the earth's crust and portions of the feet across.
underlying mantle are forced over the top of the Although the origin of kimberlite deposits is still
adjoining crust. Subsequent erosion will in time re- open to debate, most scientists believe that they
veal the overthrust mantle rock, but only samples of originated from gases and liquids under high pres-
the uppermost part of the mantle, from depths be- sure in the mantle. These highly fluid magmas rose
tween 6 and 20 miles, are exPosed in this way. One at great speed along weaknesses in the crust and
of the most important constituents of this part of violently tumbled pieces of rocks they picked up
the mantle is forsterite olivine, which is known as along the way, until they burst explosively through
peridot when it is of gem quality. the surface. Diamonds are often found as single crys-
The finest peridot in the world comes from Za- tals embedded in the volcanic kimberlite matrix.
bargad (formerly St. John's IslandJ, a tiny island in The study of kimberlites as sources of diamond
the Red Sea that is situated on a thrust sheet. De- is relatively recent. Until 1870, diamond had been
spite the desolate nature of this island and its lack found only in alluvial deposits. In that year, the first
of fresh water, peridot has drawn people here for of several diamond pipes was discovered near the
thousands of years. Small pits and tunnels, some town of Kimberley in South Africa (hence the name
hundreds of years old, dot the island. Peridot has kimberlite). Since this time kimberlite deposits have
not been mined commercially on the island since been found in many parts of the world, including
before World War II, however. The political instabil- most of western and southern Africa, many areas of
ity of the region, high cost of mining, and the avail- northern Siberia, China, and, most importantly, in
ability of peridot from more accessible and Western Australia. In 1979 diamonds were discov-
hospitable places in the world continue to discour- ered in the Kimberley area of Western Australia.
age modern mining undertakings there. Today, that area is the number one producer in the
Diamonds reach the earth's surface in turbu- world, with an average output of 30 million carats
lent, volcanic eruptions that originate in the maJItle annually (Map 4).
at depths between 90 and 200 miles. No known erup-
tion of this type has occurred in recorded history.
117
8
Mantle Thrust Sheet
Gem Deposits:
The Zabargad Island, Egypt,
Peridot Deposits
Gemstones formed at great depth, in the earth's gether, thrusting one side over the other. Portions
mantle, can be studied and recovered only when of the mantle just beneath the crust may be carried
this mantle material is brought to the earth's sur- along with the overriding crust and thereby reach
face through one of a number of geologic pro- the surface as mantle thrust sheets. Thrust sheets
cesses. Corundum, such as the rubies from the originate at depths between 6 and 20 miles below
Chanthaburi-Trat area of Thailand, may be formed the surface with temperatures between 800° and
in the mantle and brought to the surface as basaltic l,OOO°C.
volcanic eruptions. Diamonds are exclusively Peridot, the gem variety of forsterite olivine, is
brought from great depths in the mantle through usually found in the mantle only as small crystals.
unique types of volcanoes known as pipes. Where Sometimes, during the upward movement of man-
the earth's crust thins due to rifting, mantle mate- tle thrust sheets, hot fluids dissolve the mantle-
rial, including peridot, may be thrust to the surface formed crystals and redeposit them as larger, gem-
in sheets (Fig. 8-1). quality crystals.
In some areas of the earth's surface, forces pull In spite of its small size, Zabargad Island is an
the earth's crust apart and cause it to become thin extraordinary source of information for geologists
and fractured. This is known as rifting. If these seeking evidence of the early rifting history of the
forces reverse, the crust may be pushed back to- Red Sea and the nature of its underlying mantle.
119
120 Mantle Thrust Sheet Gem Deposits
Figure 8-1. Diagram showing emplacement of mantle Figure 8-2. Faceted peridot from Zabargad, Egypt. This
thrust sheet. Courtesy of the Natural History Museum of stone is part of the Phillips Collection of the Natural
Los Angeles County. History Museum of Los Angeles County. Photo by Harold
and Erica Van Pelt.
From a gemologist's point of view, the island has Location and Access
historically provided the world with its finest spec-
Zabargad Island is located in the northern Red Sea,
imens of gem olivine, or peridot (Fig. 8-2).
approximately 54 km southeast of the tip of the
Ra's Banas peninsula and 50 km east of the port of
Berenice. Its precise location is latitude 23°36'161/
THE ZABARGAD ISLAND, EGYPT, north and longitude 36°11'421/ east. The triangular
PERIDOT DEPOSITS island is about 3 km on a side or less than 5 square
km in size. The highest point, approximately 235
The Red Sea is one of the most dynamic tectonic
m, on this desolate island is Peridot Hill, the south-
features on the earth's surface. Geologists view the
ern of three peridotite masses on the island (Fig.
Red Sea as an embryonic ocean.
8-3).
The Red Sea forms part of a rift system that
Access to the island is only by boat, as the is-
includes the Gulf of Aden and the East African rift
land has no airstrip. An interesting deSCription of
in the south, and the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of
the 7-hour journey by boat from the port of Ra's
Aqaba in the north. Rifting initiated in the late Oli-
Banas is found in Bancroft (1984).
gocene-Miocene time.
The northern Red Sea is a continental rift that
History
has developed nearly to the point where sea floor
spreading initiates. Active sea floor spreading is oc- Zabargad Island has produced the world's finest
curring in the southern end of the Red Sea. peridot for possibly 3,500 years, since the mines
Zabargad has yielded information on the na- were worked on behalf of the Egyptian pharaohs
ture of the upper mantle in a young rift zone with as early as 1500 B .C. According to Wilson (1976),
lithosphere transitional from continental to oce- peridot that could have come only from Zabargad
anic. Studies of the peridotite suggest an origin of has been found in archaeological excavations in
more than 30-km depth. Alexandria, Egypt. Pliny the Elder (23-79 A.DJ
The peridotites were probably uplifted in con- noted that the Greeks called the island Topazos,
nection with the development of the Red Sea rift. from which the ancient name for peridot, topazion,
The island of Zabargad is probably a tectoni- was derived. During its early history, the island was
cally uplifted fragment of Red Sea lithosphere that also called the Serpent Isle. During the Crusades,
has exposed blocks of mantle-derived peridotite. Westerners discovered the island and named it St.
The peridotites on the island, which are unusually John's, a name retained today by some gemolo-
fresh and free of serpentinization, were studied in gists. Then the island was lost for many hundreds
detail by Bonatti and associates (1981) following of years until it was rediscovered as a source for
field trips to the island in 1979 and 1980. peridot in the early part of the twentieth century.
Tht' Zabargad Island, Egypt, Pt'ridot Dt'posits 121
Its first mention in modem times is noted by Bauer

(1904), who gave only vague reference to the loca-
tion for fine peridot showing up on the European
market. The first specific mention of St. John's Is-
land as a source for fine peridot was made by
Michel (1906). During the twentieth centul)', St.
John's Island has been cited as Zeberget, Zebirged,
and Zabargad. The latter, meaning peridot in Ara-
bic, is the most commonly used name today.
Living conditions and mining activity on Zabar-
gad have always been exceedingly difficult. It is
truly a desert island with virtually no fresh water
and only meager desert vegetation. Little, if any-
thing, is known about mining activity prior to this
centul)', except that it has always been vel)' primi-
tive-simple digging of tunnels along exposed
veins until the veins pinched out or the tunnels
were no longer safe (Fig. 8-4). In the twentieth cen-
tul)', mining activity reached its peak between 1906
and World War I. During this time, mining rights
Figure 8-3. View of Peridot Hill, the highest point on the were held solely in the hands of the Khedive, the
island (235 m above sea leve[), as seen from the sea. Turkish Viceroy in Egypt (Gubelin, 1981). In 1922,
Photo by Peter Bancroft. the Egyptian government gave the mining rights to
Figure 8-4. Main gem pits near bottom of Peridot Hill on Zabargad Island. Photo by Peter
Bancroft·
Figure 8-5. Ruins of mining camp on Zabargad built in the early twentieth century. Peridot
Hill is in the background. Photo by Peter Bancroft.
Figure 8-6. View of old peridot waste dumps on the eastern flank of Peridot Hill. Photo by
Peter Bancroft.
The Zaba rgad Island , Egypt, Peridot Deposits 123
36 Ii
ZABARGAD ISLAND
o sao m SITUATION MAP

...
' ......--'==='1
Ras Bana=-
Zabargad
~
23'
23'
37' 3i
l±±J 7 . P4!lridotlte
~ 2. 010 reef limestone ~ 8. Basall and dolerite •

t::::..:...J
m
23' O'1iocene-earty ~Elistoc8ne) ~ 23
36 ~ 3. (~g~C~~d~~:r:~~n'lerate 9. G8bbro 36 Figure 8-7, Geologic map of

~ 4. Evaporite (M iocen e) * 10 Ni mlnerahza'ions
the island of Zabargad, Inset
mm 5. f~~~;~:: t~I:~;~~~ :;."Z 11. Faults

shows the relationship of
the island to the Egyptian
~ 6. Metamorph1c rocks \~ 12. AttitudE!
AlterG. llnl
mainland (Adaptedfrom
36 12'
Bonatti et aL, 1981).
the Red Sea Mining Company. This company work on the island's geology in the 1970s and
began mining in 1924 and introduced relatively 1980s. Today, this island is one of the most thor-
modem facilities to the island. The ruins of these oughly studied 5 square km known. EI Shazly and
facilities are still visible to visitors to the island associates (1972, 1974) studied details of the min-
today (Fig. 8-5). Miners commonly sieved the crys- eralogy of the island. Modem detailed geologic
tals from the are and left dumps of concentrate mapping by Bonatti and co-workers (1981) marked
over the flanks of Peridot Hill (Fig. 8-6) . The Red Sea the beginning of intensive work on all aspects of
Mining Company was very successful in supplying the island's geologic history (Fig. 8-7). Petrological
fine gem peridot to cutters in France until the out- and geochemical studies of the peridotites were
break of World War II. After World War II, mining done by Bonatti and associates (1983, 1986, 1987),
activity was sporadic, and all but ceased when the and structural work on the island was accom-
mines were nationalized by the Egyptian govern- plished by Nicolas and Boudier (1987) . In 1988 a
ment in 1958. A detailed account of the history of major series of papers on all aspects of the island
peridot mining on Zabargad is given in Giibelin was published (Seyler and Bonatti, 1988; Piccardo
(1981 ). et al., 1988; Petrini et al., 1988) ,
The island is generally thought to be a tecton-
ically uplifted fragment of the Red Sea lithosphere
exposing blocks of mantle-derived peridotite. Za-
Geology bargad lies in a zone of transition between the
Zabargad is important not only to gemologists but southern Red Sea, with a nearly continuous axial
also to geologists interested in the Red Sea area, rift valley carpeted by an oceanic type of crust, and
The first geological reconnaissance mapping of Za- the Northern Red Sea, where an axial rift valley is
bargad was completed by Moon (1923). His work poorly developed or absent. Nicolas and Boudier
was the cornerstone of all that was known of Za- (1987) concluded that Zabargad Island resulted
bargad's geology until interest in the Red Sea's role from mantle diapirism contemporaneous with
in plate tectonics theory sparked a great deal of early rifting ofthe Red Sea. Styles and Gardes (1983)
believe that the diapir may be part of a much larger determined the age of dike emplacement at less
dome that may extend to a depth of at least 8 km. than 20 million years, about the same age as the
The basement of Zabargad Island is composed peridotite uplift and the initial opening of the Red
of fresh plagioclase-spinellherzolites (peridotites). Sea.
These mantle-derived peridotites are in contact
with metamorphic amphibolites and felsitic
gneisses. The peridotites and metamorphic rocks Peridot Occurrence
are overlain by the Zabargad formation, a suite of Generally, gem peridot occurrences on Zabargad
shales, quartzites, and limestones. The Zabargad Island are limited to the eastern slope of the south-
formation is unconformably overlain by the gently ern peridotite, the 235-m-high Peridot Hill. In the
folded evaporite unit, the old reef limestone, and vicinity of the major east-west fault zone, gem per-
young reef limestone (Bonatti et al., 1981). The eva- idot crystals occur in veins that transverse the
porite unit is middle Miocene in age and occurs highly serpentinized peridotite. These veins con-
discordantly in a syncline of the Zabargad forma- sist nearly entirely of olivine, with minor nickle-
tion. It has been mildly folded. The old reef and rich serpentine and iron-nickle oxides. The gem
young reef limestones are both Pleistocene in age peridot is found in open cavities in the veins and
and confined to the eastern extreme of the island. as overgrowths on flat brown olivine crystals that
The peridotites are found in three areas of Za- are up to 20 cm long (Kurat et al., 1982a). Few of
bargad, each of which forms a structural high on the crystals are found attached to vug walls. Most
the island. The northern and central peridotites are found in the rubble at the bottom of the vugs.
are considered spinellherzolites, and the southern The gem crystals are typically pristine with little or
peridotite is a plagioclase lherzolite. The southern no etching, unlike the heavily etched crystals from
peridotite, known as Peridot Hill, is by far the larg- the only other source of peridot crystals, Burma.
est of the peridotite bodies. Located along the The Zabargad crystals are typically flattened and
southwestern shore of the island, it is bounded to tabular in form (Fig. 8-8).
the north by a major fault zone, which may have According to Clochiatti and associates (1981),
significance for the genesis of gem peridot. Here, the peridot crystals can be attributed to the hy-
the peridotite is uncharacteristically strongly ser- drothermal alteration that heavily serpentinized
pentinized, and the hydrothermal alteration also the southern peridotite. This alteration took place
gave rise to gem peridot (Bonatti et al., 1981). Nico- along north-northwest to south-southeast veins at
las and Boudier (1988) determined an age for the temperatures of about 750° to 950°C and near sur-
peridotite mantle diapir emplacement as late Oli- face pressures. Clochiatti and associates (1981)
gocene or Miocene and confirm that it is related to postulate that the alteration and peridot minerali-
the initial opening of the Red Sea. zation was the result of seawater contamination
The metamorphic rocks on Zabargad Island during the final stages of the mantle intrusion,
consist of amphibolites interlayered with felsitic when the peridotite penetrated the seafloor (Kurat
gneisses. These metamorphic rocks are in contact et al., 1982a). During the final stages of emplace-
with the mantle-derived peridotites (Seyler and ment, seawater invaded fractures in the peridotite,
Bonatti, 1988). Nicolas and Boudier (1987) con- resulting in metasomatic mineralization and form-
cluded that the metamorphic rocks are probably ing the gem peridot. Piccardo and associates (1988)
related to the intrusion of the mantle diapir into suggest that this mineralization was then followed
the crust, but the exact origin of the gneisses could by the emplacement of the diabase dikes and final
not be determined (Boudier et al., 1988). The age of emplacement on the seafloor. Clochiatti and co-
the metamorphics could not be accurately deter- workers (1981) suggest that th~ seawater contami-
mined due to excess argon (Villa, 1988). nation is reflected in the hypersaline fluid inclu-
Numerous diabase dikes crosscut the perido- sions typical of Zabargad peridot.
tite and gneisses. Diabase sills are particularly well
developed along the contact between the perido-
Important Peridots
tites and the Zabargad formation. These diabase
intrusions belong to two distinct generations: First, Very few important peridots that can definitely be
diabase dikes up to 1 m wide intruded the meta- attributed to Zabargad are known today. However,
morphic rocks and the peridotites; and second, the many historical stones can be attributed to the is-
diabase dikes, mainly in the southern peridotite land because of their age. Furthermore, important
(Peridot Hill), and related diabase sills up to several collections in Europe, including the Treasury of
tens of meters thick (Petrini et al., 1988). Villa (1988) the Three Magi in Cologne and the Vatican, contain
The Zabargad Island, Egypt, Peridot Deposits 125
peridots mistakenly identified as emerald. Faceted faceted counterparts. According to Bancroft (1984),
peridots in major museums are commonly of du- the largest Zabargad Island crystal was found
bious origin. Those possibly from Burma include a sometime after 1922 and measured 6.6 by 5.1 by 2.5
310-carat stone in the Smithsonian Institution, a cm and was a well-formed, nearly perfect crystal.
192-carat peridot in the Diamond Treasury of the Fortunately, it was not faceted. It was purchased
Kremlin in Moscow, several large gems in the Royal by the British Museum of Natural History for $100
Ontario Museum in Toronto, and a 136-carat peri- and can be seen there today (Fig. 8-9). The nearby
dot in the Geological Museum in London. Geological Museum has a crystal measuring 4.5 by
Zabargad peridots can be distinguished from 3.5 cm from Zabargad, and the Montgomery Collec-
Burmese by their inclusions. The Zabargad peridot tion of the Smithsonian Institution includes a
typically contains chromite crystals and abundant major Zabargad peridot crystal. These crystals are
fluid inclusions, whereas the Burmese peridot differentiated from the characteristically etched
lacks fluid inclusions and typically contains un- Burmese crystals by their pristine condition. Very
usual "rectangular" brown biotite flakes. fine peridot is more commonly found in jewelry as
Important peridot crystals are as rare as their illustrated in Figure 8-10 .
...
Figure 8-8. Peridot crystalfrom Zabargadfrom the Montgomery Collection of the

Smithsonian Institution. Photo by Rock Currier.
126 Mantle Thrust Sheet Gem DeposiL'>
Figure 8-9. Very fine

peridot crystalfrom
Zabargad Island, measuring
4 cm in length. Collection
of the American Museum
of Natural History. Photo by
Figure 8-10. One of the

finest faceted el<-amples of
peridot from Zabargad is
this 63.80 carat stone set as
a pendant. Photo by Harold
and Erica Van Pelt.
The Zabargad Island, Egypt, Peridot Deposits 127
REFERENCES Giibelin, E. 1981. Zabargad: The ancient peridot island in

the Red Sea. Gems & Gemology 17:2-8.
Bancroft, P. 1984. Gem and Crystal Treasures. Western Kurat, G., G. Niedermayr, and M. Prinz. 1982a. Peridot von
Enterprises-Mineralogical Record, Fallbrook, Cal. Zabargad, Rotes Meer. Atifscluss 33:169-182.
488 pages. Kurat, G., G. Niedermayr, M. Prinz, and F. Brandstatter.
Bauer, M. 1904. Precious Stones. Charles Griffin and Co., 1982b. High temperature peridotite intrusion into an
London, 404-407. evaporite sequence, Zabargad, Egypt. Terra Cognita
Bonatti, E., R. Clochiatti, P. Colantoni, R. Gelmini, G. Mar- 2:240.
inelli, G. Ottonello, R. Santacroce, M. Taviani, A. A. Michel, L. 1906. Sur Ie gisement de chrysolite de l'ile Saint
Abdel-Meguid, H. S. Assaf, and M. A. El Tahir. 1983. Jean (Mer Rouge). Bull. Soc. Franc. Min. 29:360-361.
Zabargad (St. John's) Island: An uplifted fragment of Moon, F. W. 1923. Preliminary Geological Report on Saint
sub-Red Sea lithosphere. J. Geol. Soc. ILondon) John's Island (Red Sea). Geological Survey of Egypt.
140:677-690. Cairo, 36 pages.
Bonatti, E., P. R. Hamlyn, and G. Ottonello. 1981. The Nicolas, A., and F. Boudier. 1987. Structure of Zabargad
upper mantle beneath a young oceanic rift: Perido- Island and early rifting of the Red Sea. J. Geophys.
tites from the island of Zabargad IRed Sea). Geology Res. 92:461-474.
9:474-491. Petrini, R., J. L. Joron, G. Ottonello, E. Bonatti, and M.
Bonatti, E., G. Ottonello, and P. R. Hamlyn. 1986. Pelido- Seyler. 1988. Basaltic dykes from Zabargad Lsland,
tites from the island of Zabargad 1St. John's) Red Sea: Red Sea: Petrology and Geochemistry. Tectonophys-
Petrology and geochemistly. J. Geophys. Res. ics 150:229-248.
21:599-631. Piccardo, G. B., B. Messiga, and R. Vannucci. 1988. The
Bonatti, E., and M. Seyler. 1987. Crustal underplating and Zabargad peridotite-pyroxenite association: Petro-
evolution in the Red Sea rift: Uplifted gabbro/gneiss logic constraints to the evolutive history. Tectono-
crustal complexes on Zabargad and Brothers Is- physics 150:135-162.
lands. J. Geophys. Res. 92:12803-12821. Seyler, M., and E. Bonatti. 1988. Petrology of a gneiss/
Boudier, F., A. Nicolas, S. Ji, J. R. Kienast, and C. Mevel. amphibolite lower crust unit from Zabargad Island.
1988. The gneisses of Zabargad Island: Deep crust of Tectonophysics 150:177-207.
a rift. Tectonophysics 150:209-277. Styles, P., and K. Gardes. 1983. St. John's Island IRed Sea):
Clochiatti, R., D. Massare, and C. Jehanno. 1981. Origine A new geophysical model and its implications for
hydrothermale des olivines gemmes de l'ile de Za- the emplacement of ultraunafic rocks in fracture
bargad (St. John), Mer Rouge, par l'etude de leurs zones and at continental margins. Earth Planet. Sci.
inclusions. Bull. Mineral 104:354-360. Lett. 65:353-368.
El Shazly, E. M., and G. S. Saleeb. 1972. Scapolite-cancrin- Villa, I. M. 1988. 4OArf'9Ar analysis of amphiboles from Za-
ite mineral association in st. John's Island, Egypt. bargad Island IRed Seal. Tectonophysics 150:249.
24th International Geological Congress (Montreal) Wilson, W. E. 1976. Saint John's Island, Egypt. Min. Rec-
Reports 14:192-199. ord7:310-314.
El Shazly, E. M., G. S. Saleeb, and N. Zake. 1974. Quater-
nary basalt in St. John's Island, Red Sea, Egypt. Egyp-
tian Journal of Geology 18:137-148.
9
Diamond Pipes:
The DiaIllond Deposits of
Argyle, Western Australia
One of the few windows through the earth's rela- The definition of kimberlite has been confus-
tively thin crust into its underlying mantle is the ing. Early definitions simply stated that a kimber-
diatreme or pipe that occasionally has pierced the lite consisted of mafic igneous rock containing
crust to bring mantle material such as diamond to mantle phases, commonly including diamond, and
the surface (Fig. 9-1). Experimental work has shown occurring as pipes or dikes. Today the definition is
that most synthetic diamonds generally must have far more complex, including mineralogical, chemi-
very high temperatures (2,000°C) and pressures cal, and textural considerations (Guilbert and Park,
(70,000 kglcm2) to form. In nature these conditions 1986). Skinner and Clement (1979) proposed the
exist only at depths of at least 200 km below the mineralogical and chemical constraints, and Clem-
earth's surface. Material formed at these depths ent et al., (1979) the textural. Mineralogically, kim-
comes to the surface in pipes, which may be berlite is a volatile-rich, potassic, ultramafic,
thought of as a very special type of volcano that igneous rock composed principally of olivine with
taps depths as great as 350 km below the earth's lesser amounts of phlogopite, diopside, serpentine,
surface. The volcanic rock type found in these or calcite. Other high-pressure, mantle-derived
pipes is called kimberlite, named for its type area minerals that may be present include chromite, il-
of Kimberley, South Africa. Since its discovery in menite, pyrope-gamet, and magnetite. The term
1871, the Kimberley area has yielded more than 200 kimberlite is used to describe a wide range of al-
million carats of diamond and a wealth of geologic kaline ultrabasic rocks that share features typical
information about kimberlite pipes and the earth's of the classic kimberlite of the Kimberley region of
upper mantle. South Africa. These consist of a diatreme form of
129
130 Diamond Pipes
emplacement and evidence of derivation from the

deeper part of the earth's upper mantle; that is,
some kimberlites contain garnet lherzolite xeno-
liths and/or pyrope (Jaques et al., 1984).
The structure and mode of emplacement of
these very different igneous structures has been
studied in detail over the last few decades. The
kimberlite pipes are typically carrot shaped, and
Hawthorne (1975) developed a diagrammatic
model of a kimberlite pipe shortly after emplace-
ment. Kennedy and Nordlie (1968) noted that these
carrot-shaped intrusions became narrower with
depth and, in fact, may become dikelike at deeper
levels in the crust.
The mode of emplacement has been the sub-
ject of great speculation for many years. Tradition-
ally, kimberlite pipes were thought to have been
emplaced as very violent, rapid eruptions of mantle
material exploding at the surface to form a conelike
depression filled with not only volcanic material
but also any rock type encountered on its upward
journey. It was generally believed that expansion
of CO-COz-HzO gases might have chilled the kim-
berlite during eruption and metastably preserved
diamond that ordinarily would burn at the high
temperatures found in the lava (Guilbert and Park,
1986).
Kimberlite emplacement theories have re-
cently been revised to suggest that the kimberlites
did indeed rise rapidly as magma wedges, but only
at depths of 100 to 200 km. Once the surface was
approached, magma stoping became important as
the emplacement process slowed dramatically.
Just below the earth's surface, a "gas cap" formed,
exploding and throwing material upward to form a
conical crater filled with explosive breccia and tuffs
(Guilbert and Park, 1986). Hawthorne (1975) believes
that the kimberlite pipe may be shaped like a tear-
drop rather than a carrot and may pinch out at
depth. These "emplacements" commonly oc-
curred as a series of intrusive events that left be-
hind clusters of kimberlite pipes and dikes.
Within an ideal kimberlite pipe, three different
forms of kimberlite may be recognized according
to a textural classification proposed by Clement
and Skinner (1979). These include the hypabyssal,
diatreme, and crater kimberlite facies. The hyp-
abyssal facies represents the crystallized, deeper-
seated, porphyritic kimberlite. It represents the
kimberlitic magma that crystallized below the dia-
treme. The diatreme facies contains both mantle-
and crustal-derived rock fragments with kimberlite
lapilli and tuffs in the upper portions. The dia-
Figure 9-1. Diagram showing idealized diamond pipe.
treme facies represents the main mass of the intru-
Courtesy of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles sive body. The third kimberlite type found in a pipe
County. is the crater facies. It represents the pyroclastic
Tilt' Diamond Deposits or Argyle, Western Australia 131
debris that has fallen back into the crater following Worldwide, about 20 other pipes are signifi-
the explosive eruption. It mayor may not be water cant. The geographic distribution of these pipes is
laid. vel}' interesting. All are located in vel}' stable, old,
Diamond deposits represent the poorest con- continental shields. These include significant clus-
centration of any ore deposit known. According to ters in the Siberian area of the Soviet Union and in
Guilbert and Park (1986), the open-pit mine at Kof- many widely distributed areas of the African shield;
fiefontein, located approximately 80 km southeast the eastern margin of the South American shield
of Kimberley, mines ore yielding about 10 carats of contains abundant alluvial deposits of diamonds
diamond per 100 metric tons of ore. Of this, only whose parentage was obviously from nearby pipes
about 3S percent is gem quality; the remainder is that have either eroded away or simply not yet
industrial grade. been discovered. Kimberlites and kimberlitelike
Today, kimberlites and related mantle-derived rocks, some of which contain diamonds, are
kimberlitelike rocks have been discovered and known all the way across the North American con-
studied on virtually evel}' continent except Antarc- tinent. The Murfreesboro, Arkansas, lamproite pipe
tica. Furthermore, many intrusive ultramafic rocks is well known. More recently discovered and far
that had previously been dismissed as not kimber- less known is the area around the Colorado-
litic and therefore not diamond bearing are being Wyoming border where diamonds have also been
reexamined and found to be indeed diamondifer- discovered in kimberlites.
ous. One of the principal factors in this new look
at previously dismissed rocks is the recent discov-
Argyle Pipe, Western Australia
el}' of diamonds in lamproite intrusions rather
than kimberlite intrusions in the Kimberley area in The richest diamond pipe in the world today is the
the north of Western Australia. In fact, the Argyle Argyle (AK1) pipe of the Kimberley region of West
lamproite pipe produced almost 30 million carats Australia, which has been in production only since
of diamonds in its first year of production, making 1986 (Fig. 9-2). In that year, it produced almost 30
it the largest single producer of diamonds in the million carats of diamonds. Although Argyle pro-
world. duces some vel}' fine pink diamonds (Fig. 9-3), un-
Figure 9-2. Overview of the Argyle operation in Western Australia. Note mine in the
background. Photo by Brian Stevenson. Courtesy ofArgyle Diamond Sales.
132 Diamond Pipes
Figure 9-3. The Argyle pipe is best known for its rare and spectacular pink diamonds. One
of the finest recovered to date is this cushion-cut, 2.2l-carat, intense pink diamond. Photo
by Brian Stevenson. Courtesy ofArgyle Diamond Sales.
The Diamond Deposits of Argyle, Western Australia 133
fortunately, only about 5 percent of the mine

output is considered to be of gem quality. However,
Argyle is significant for more than its impressive
diamond production. It is also significant because
it has dramatically altered geologists' perception
that diamonds are always related to kimberlites.
Even though Argyle was assumed to be a kimberlite
when first discovered and given the designation
AK1 (Argyle Kimberlite 1), geologists now know
that Argyle is an ultrapotassic mantle-derived
rock known as lamproite. Lamproites have in the
past been assumed not to contain diamonds and
have therefore been generally overlooked by dia-
mond prospectors. A detailed account of the Argyle
pipe and its discovery can be found in Atkinson
r~ o..."-f"'l'I(It.l
and associates (1984a, 1984b), Atkinson (1987),
oI'1 E'i;'3 ,,,"~Mft(Jt.'_
Geach (1986), and Furney (1985). D !:.:'c.::"La=== ~ ~~ £.::l:I "IISI~ __ •
i
_M. . ".
---
~C(I;&I'''''''''U''II''' ~~ BJ o.-uy,-od~~
Location and Access

-:? ~~.~INI-:~· §it -l" r;:;;l ' ....
i
~ ad~.I'Ot......
~O( N o·r(SA.TSJ~t
:i ~ :!.~::.~=~~ t!' • • __ ~."".·"H
The Argyle pipe is in the East Kimberley Province ~ :::;:~~~=IC"

01 t.uh III.....
of Western Australia (Fig. 9-4), approximately 2,200 tQO'Og~.," ...l>OtJ'Ill. rEa .• -"
"I!~""'" ~D5tON[
~.- N~"~'
# ::~~~IO("OI'
CioeooIoIiIy....cl~I.-CIot'4o!
"'0fII 'Ml ....--o~CH. eo..*1
km northeast of Perth in a vast area that boasts only .c f4,,(.~.'_""' ~IGI
five towns with a total population of about 16,000

people. The Argyle pipe occupies a small valley
floor near the eastern end of the Matsu Range near
the headwaters of Smoke Creek. The valley is the
result of preferential weathering of the relatively
soft lamproite, which erodes faster than the sur-
rounding sandstone and quartzite walls that form
the rim of the valley. The Argyle pipe is named after
the nearby 720-square-km, man-made Lake Argyle.
As noted above, the pipe was originally given the
acronym AK1 for Argyle Kimberlite Number 1. Sub-
sequently, the pipe was determined to be a lam-
proite, not a kimberlite. The pipe is now simply
called the Argyle pipe, and the mine that exploits
the pipe is the Argyle mine.
Access to the 450,OOO-square-km Kimberley re-
gion is gained by the all-weather Great Northern
Highway, which crosses the area from north to
south. As in many rural areas of the world, the
secondary roads leading off the main highway are
of variable quality but give reasonable access to
most areas. With the exception of the Great North-
ern Highway, all roads are generally impassable
during the rainy season, which extends from De-
cember through March. Most exploration activities
have been carried out using helicopters. Since the
Argyle mine has gone into production, the mine
can be reached by an all-weather road from the
Great Northern Highway, except that access is
strictly limited due to security arrangements. Vis-
iting the area requires first gaining permission from Figure 9-4. Geologic map and cross section showing
the Argyle Diamond Mines Pty. Limited (ADM), who rock units, structure, and location ofArgyle mine in
manage and operate the mine. Western Australia.
134 Diamond Pipes
History and Production of Diamonds 11 diamonds, all from the Smoke Creek drainage.
in Australia In September, a concentrated effort began to follow
the Smoke Creek drainage upstream until, on Oc-
Secondary or alluvial diamonds, largely from allu- tober 2, 1979, they discovered the diamond's
vial gold workings, have been known in Australia source, the Argyle (AK1) pipe. In 1981 alluvial dia-
since 1851, when diamonds were found at Bathurst monds were found in the Limestone Creek drain-
in New South Wales. Between that time and 1922, age on the southeast side of the Argyle pipe. This
more than 200,000 carats of diamonds were pro- deposit has estimated reserves of 1.6 million tons
duced from the Copetown, Bingara, and Cudge- yielding an estimated 3.4 carats per metric ton.
gong fields, all in New South Wales (McNevin, 1977). Early, limited scale production began in Janu-
These New South Wales fields have seen little pro- ary 1983 with the Smoke Creek Alluvial deposit. The
duction since the 1920s. Interest in diamond explo- Smoke Creek gravels totaled an estimated 580,000
ration had a resurgence in Australia, particularly in metric tons, with an estimated yield of 4.6 carats
southeastern Australia, in the 1960s, but the results per ton. In its first year of production, 6,154,639
were relatively insignificant. carats of diamond, valued at more than $60 million,
Even though diamonds were first discovered were recovered.
with gold in 1895 in Western Australia, near the Full-scale mining and production began in
town of Nullagine in the Pilbara region some 800 early 1986. The Argyle Diamond Mines Pty. Limited
km from Kimberley, little interest in exploration de- is utilizing the open-pit method at the Argyle mine
veloped in this area of the country. By the end of (Fig. 9-5), with ore dumped from 77-ton trucks onto
the 1960s, interest in the area had slowly devel- a stockpile to await processing in the state-of-the-
oped. The first exploration work for diamonds in art treatment plant. The treatment plant is de-
the Kimberley region of Western Australia began in signed to process 3 million tons of lamproite ore a
1967 and included three major entities: Stockdale year (Fig. 9-6). The topography around the mine is
Prospecting (DeBeers), Oilmin N. L. Consortium, exceedingly rugged, and an estimated 20 million
and Stellar Minerals, N. L. Between 1967 and 1971, tons of overburden had to be stripped from the
nine small diamonds were recovered from the area, pipe surface before operations could proceed. In
but further work failed to find any additional its first year it yielded 29.2 million carats of dia-
stones or indications of a source. mond and became the largest single producer of
In July 1972, the Kalumbura Joint Venture was diamond in the world today. Unfortunately, only
established to prospect for diamonds north of 19° about 5 percent were of gem-quality, accounting
south latitude in the Kimberley region. By October for about 3 percent of the world's gem-quality dia-
1973, the Kalumbura Joint Venture discovered sev- monds. Approximately 40 percent are considered
eral small diamonds in the King George River area "cheap gem," and the remaining 55 percent are
in north Kimberley, and further, more vigorous ex- industrial-grade diamonds. In terms of richness,
ploration was encouraged. Exploration activities the Argyle pipe is almost five times richer than the
took a dramatic boost in February 1976, when CRA world's average, yielding nearly 7 carats per ton of
joined the exploration consortium and the Kalum- ore. Proven ore reserves for the pipe are estimated
bura Joint Venture became the Ashton Joint Ven- to be 61 million tons, with an average yield of an
ture. By the end of 1977, a very large pipe was incredible 6.8 carats per metric ton. A further esti-
discovered at Ellendale in West Kimberley, and mated 14 million tons with a yield of 6.1 carats per
about 12 small gem diamonds up to 0.1 carats were metric ton have been classified as "probable re-
recovered. A small recovery plant was constructed serve." Given current economic factors, this would
at the site. In 1978 a concentrated effort was put guarantee the production of the Argyle pipe for at
forth on the Ellendale area. Even though 46 lam- least 20 years.
proitic pipes were delineated and 60 to 90 percent
of the diamonds recovered were of gem quality, the
Geology of the Argyle Pipe
deposit was considered uneconomic at this time.
It did encourage more exploration, however. By the The regional geology of the East Kimberley area has
summer of 1979, exploration activity began to cen- been described in detail by Dow and Gemuts
ter on the Smoke Creek area some 25 km east of (1969). The Argyle pipe is geologically situated in a
the Great Northern Highway. On August 28, 1979, major tectonic feature known as the Halls Creek
the Perth laboratory reported finding two dia- Mobile Zone, a 400-km-Iong, north-northeast-
monds in a sample collected in this area. The next trending belt of deformed Precambrian metamor-
day they noted four more stones, followed by five phic, igneous, and sedimentary rocks, overlain in
stones 2 days later. In the 3-day period, they found part by Paleozoic sedimentary and volcanic rocks.
Figure 9-5. The open-pit Argyle mine. Photo by Brian Stevenson. Courtesy ofArgyle
Diamond Sales.
Figure 9-6. The diamond-recovery plant located adjacent to the Argyle mine. Photo by
Brian Stevenson. Courtesy ofArgyle Diamond Sales.
136 Diamond Pipes
According to Jaques and associates (1986), the Halls cent to the pipe (Bofinger, 1967). The ages of the
Creek Mobile Zone is particularly significant be- two rock types agree well. The lamproite age was
cause it separates the older cratons of the Stuart determined to be between 1,048 and 1,253 million
Block and the Kimberley Block and is about 60 km years. The adjacent shales, which were intruded
wide. Its boundaries are delineated by two major by the lamproite, were determined to be between
faults: the Halls Creek fault on the east and the 1,057 and 1,158 million years.
Greenvale fault on the west. The location of the
lamproite intrusions, including the Argyle pipe, is
believed to be strongly controlled by the evolution
Characteristics of Argyle Diamonds
of the Halls Creek Mobile Zone, particularly fault-
ing. Its history has, therefore, been of great interest. Hall and Smith's (1984) detailed study of the Argyle
The most important study of the structure and evo- diamonds noted that the average stone weight is
lution of this tectonic feature was by Hancock and less than 0.1 carat, although stones up to almost 17
Rutland (1984). They concluded that the evolution carats have been found. The relatively small aver-
of the Halls Creek Mobile Zone was basically a se- age weight may be due to the strong resorption of
ries of extensions and compressions during Protero- the diamonds. Irregular "resorbed" shapes are pre-
zoic times. dominant. Typically, the Argyle stones are frac-
The Argyle pipe intruded two major sedimen- tured, strongly resorbed dodecahedra or
tary rock formations that are exposed in its vicinity: combinations of dodecahedra and octahedra.
the Revolver Creek formation of early Proterozoic Deeply etched channels are also characteristic.
age and the Carr Boyd group of late Proterozoic Minor amounts of macles and crystal aggregates
age. The Revolver Creek formation consists of a have been noted, and no cubic crystals have been
basal unit of amygdaloidal basalt overlain by an observed.
alternating sequence of sandstone, siltstone, and As noted earlier, only about 5 percent of the
shale. The formation is exposed south and west of Argyle diamonds are of gem quality (Fig. 9-7), with
the Argyle pipe and forms the base of the Matsu about 40 percent deSignated as cheap gem and the
Range. Unconformably overlying the Revolver remaining 55 percent as individual grade. Almost
Creek formation and forming the main portion of 80 percent of the diamonds from Argyle are brown,
the Matsu Range is the Carr Boyd group. This and most of the remaining 20 percent are yellow
group consists of the Hensman sandstone, the and colorless. Very significant, however, are the
Golden Gate siltstone, and the Lissadell formation rare but economically important pink diamonds
of siltstone and shale. that are bringing Argyle fame. Green diamonds are
The Argyle pipe occupies most of the small also found occasionally.
valley floor at the headwaters of Smoke Creek. The Graphite is the most common mineral inclu-
valley itself owes its existence to the preferential sion in Argyle diamonds. Other minerals noted by
erosion of the relatively soft lamproite of the pipe Hall and Smith (1984) are almandine-pyrope gar-
over the sediments of the Revolver Creek formation nets, diopside, kyanite, and rutile. Hofer (1985) also
and the Carr Boyd group. The pipe itself is an elon- noted a clear mineral that he assumed to be oli-
gated body about 2 km long in a north-south direc- vine. Henry Meyer (personal communication) also
tion and varying in width from about 500 meters at noted chrome pyrope-garnet, spinel, and clinopy-
the bowl-shaped north end and narrowing to 150 roxene.
meters further south. The pipe's surface exposure Hofer (1985) undertook detailed gemological
is almost 50 hectares. studies of the Argyle diamonds. After studying a
Petrographically, the Argyle pipe is an olivine sample of 138 pink diamonds ranging in weight
lamproite. The pipe consists predominantly of a from 0.04 to 2.65 carats, he concluded that the Ar-
volcanic sandy lapilli tuff containing up to 60 per- gyle diamonds typically had a "smoky purplish
cent rounded quartz grains derived from the sur- pink" body color. Spectral analysis revealed a Cape
rounding country rock, together with clasts of absorption line at 415 nm as well as a weak
lamproite. The center of the northern end-the "smudge" at about 520 to 580 nm. Under long-wave
bowl of the pipe-is composed of a nons andy tuff ultraviolet radiation, the Argyle diamonds flu-
totally free of detrital quartz. oresced from very weak to very strong blue; under
The age of the Argyle pipe has been deter- shortwave ultraviolet radiation, they fluoresced
mined by the Rb-Sr whole rock method (Pidgeon either not at all or moderately blue. Hofer (1985)
and Smith, in prep.! of both the lamproite and the also noted that stones that fluoresced strongly blue
shale horizons above and below the Lissadell for- under long-wave exhibited yellow phosphores-
mation of the Carr Boyd group immediately adja- cence under magnification; he also noted distinct
Thp Diamond ,Deposits of Argylp, Western Australia 137
Figure 9-7. Assortment ofArgyle diamonds. Photo by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.
138 Diamond Pipes
color zoning along "grain lines." Some of the most Mining Group (Fig. 9-8). All gem diamonds and 75
characteristic features of the Argyle pink diamonds pecent of the cheap gems and industrials are sold
are the irregular "frosted" cleavage cracks and a through the CSO, and Argyle Diamond Sales retains
pitted surface on narrow voids and channels on 25 percent of the cheap gem and industrial dia-
the surface of the stones. Other gemological prop- monds for sale to other customers. Argyle Dia-
erties studied by Hofer (1985) appear to be unchar- mond Sales has an overseas sales office in Antwerp,
acteristic. in addition to its headquarters office in Perth. Sig-
The Argyle diamonds are sold through Argyle nificantly, Argyle Diamond Sales has also estab-
Diamond Sales Ltd., which markets the majority of lished a small-scale pilot diamond-cutting factory
them through the Central Selling Organization in Perth to test the economic viability of a much
(CSO) on behalf of the CRA Ltd. and the Ashton larger plant in the future.
Figure 9-8. This 3.53 ct. blue

diamond, set in a ring, is
surrounded by 36 Australian
pink diamonds with a 2.64
ct. total weight. The 0.72 ct.
intense purple-pink, heart-
shaped diamond in the
necklace is also from
Australia. Collection of R.
Esmerian, Inc., New York.
Photo by Harold and Erica
Van Pelt.
REFERENCES
Guilbert, J. M., and C. F. Park, Jr. 1986. The Geology of Ore
Argyle Diamond Mines Joint Venture Project Briefing. Deposits. W. H. Freeman and Company, New York.
1985. Private Report. 95 pages. 985 pages.
Atkinson, W. J. 1987. The exploration and development Hall, A. E., and C. B. Smith. 1984. Lmnproite diamonds:
of Australian diamond. Industrial Diamond Review Are they different? 167-212. In J. E. Glover and P. G.
(Janumy):1-8. Harris, eds., Kimberlite Occurrence and Origin. Uni-
Atkinson, W. J., F. E. Hughes, and C. B. Smith. 1982. A versity of Western Australia Geology Dept., Publ. 8.
review of the kimberlitic rocks of Western Australia Hancock, S. L., and R. W. R. Rutland. 1984. Tectonics of
(abstractJ. Terra Cognita 2:204. an early Proterozoic geosuture: The Halls Creek oro-
Atkinson, W. J., F. E. Hughes, and C. B. Smith. 1984a. A genic subprovince, northern Australia. Jour. Geodyn-
review of the kimberlitic rocks of Western Australia, amics 1:387-432.
195-224. In J. Kornprobst, ed., Kimberlites 1: Kim- Hardman, E. T. 1884. Report of the geology of the Kim-
berlites and Related Rocks. Elsevier, Amsterdam. berley district, Western Australia. West Australia
Atkinson, W. J., C. B. Smith, and G. L. Boxer. 1984b. The Parlt. Papers (1884): 31.
discovery and evaluation of the Ellendale and Argyle Hawthorne, J. B. 1975. Model of a kimberlite pipe. Phys.
lamproite diamond deposits, Kimberley Region, Chem. Earth 9:1-15.
Western Australia. Denver, SME Conference, 1984. Hofer, S. C. 1985. Pink Diamonds from Australia. Gems &
Bofinger, V. M. 1967. Geochronology of the east Kimberley Gemology 21 (3):147-155.
area of Western Australia. Ph.D. Thesis (unpub- Jaques, A. L., J. Ferguson, and C. B. Smith. 1984. Kimber-
lished), Australian National University. lites in Australia, 227-274. In J. E. Glover and P. G.
Boxer, G. L., C. B. Smith, and V. Lorenz. 1986. Geology and Harris, Kimberlite Occurrence and Origin. University
volcanology of Argyle AK 1 lamproite diatreme. 4th of Western Australia Geology Dept., Publ. 8.
Int. Kimberlite Conf. (Perth)' Extended Abstracts. Jaques, A. L., J. D. Lewis, and C. B. Smith. 1986. The Kim-
Boyd, F. R., and L. W. Finger. 1976. Homogeneity of min- berlites and Lamproites of Western Australia. Geo-
erals in mantle rocks from Lesotho. Ann. Rept. Dir. logical Survey of Western Australia Bulletin 132. 268
Geophys. Lab. 1975-76:519-528. pages.
Clement, C. R., and E. M. W. Skinner. 1979. A textural- Kennedy, G. C., and B. E. Nordlie. 1968. The genesis of
genetic classification of kimberlite rocks. Kimberlite diamond deposits. Econ. Geol. 63:495-503.
Symp. III, Univ. Cambridge, 4 pages. McNevin, A. A. 1977. Diamonds in New South Wales. New
Clement, C. R., E. M. W. Skinner, and B. H. Scott Smith. South Wales Geological Survey, Min. Res. Bull. 42.
1977. Kimberlite redefined. 2d International Kimber- Meakins, A. 1983. Geology and genesis of the Argyle allu-
lite Corn., Santa Fe, Abstracts (unpublishedJ. vial diamond deposits, Kimberley region, Western
Clement, C. R., E. M. W. Skinner, and B. H. Scott Smith. Australia, 54-56. R. Dary, C. R. M. Butt, and T. A.
1984. Kimberlite redefined. Jour. Geol. 92:223-228. Ballinger, eds., In Geochemical El(ploration in Arid
Dow, D. B., and I. Gemuts. 1969. Geology of Kimberley and Deeply Weathered Environments: Geochemistry
Region, Western Australia: The East Kimberley. Aus- and Genesis of Ore Deposits Associated with Weath-
tralia BMR, Bull. 200. ering. Assoc. Expl. Geochemists, Regional Meeting,
Ferguson, J., and J. W. Sheraton, 1979. Petrogenesis of Perth, 1983, Abstracts.
kimberlitic rocks and associated xenoliths of south- O'Neill, H. St. c., A. L. Jaques, C. B. Smith, and J. Moon.
eastern Australia, 140-160. In F. R. Boyd and H. O. A. (In preparation.) Diamond-bearing peridotite xeno-
Meyer, eds., Kimberlites, Diatremes, and Diamonds: liths from the Argyle (AK1) pipe: 4th Int. Kimberlite
(1) Their Geology, Petrology, and Geochemistrv.
Conf., Perth, Abstract volume.
American Geophysical Union, Washington, D.C. 400 Pidgeon, R. T., and. C. B. Smith. (In preparation.) The ages
of kimberlite' and lamproite emplacement in West-
pages.
Furney, P. 1985. Le pipe d'Argyle. Revue de Gemmologie ern Australia. 4th Int. Kimberlite Conf., Perth, Ab-
afg. 2:18-20. stracts volume.
Geach, C. L. 1986. Diamond Exploration in Western Aus- Skinner, E. M. W., and C. R. Clement. 1979. Mineralogical
tralia. Geology Today 2(1):16-20. classification of southern African kimberlites, 129-
139. In F. R. Boyd and H. O. A. Meyer, eds., Kimber-
Groom, F. F. 1896. Report of a visit to Bullagine, Pibara
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(1895): 27. Union, Washington, D.C. 400 pages.
INDEX
Adulerescence,71 Australian opal deposits, 23-33 Blue topaz crystals, 62, 64

Agate, formation, 20 Andamooka, South Australia, 31 Bo Rai, 77
Albite, 49, 102 Coober Pedy, 28-31 independent miners at, 79
Alkali basalts, 37-38, 72-73 discovery of, 23 ruby deposits at, 77
Alluvial beds, 10 distribution of, 24 "Brazilian Princess" blue topaz, 67
Alluvial deposits, 5-6 famous opals, 32-33 British crown jewels, 14
Amethyst, 3 general geology, 23-24 Burma
formation, 20-21 geologic occurrence, 23-24 (see also Mogok, Burma)
hydrothermal gem deposits, 40- Great Artesian Basin, 23, 31 cutting jadeite boulder at
41 history, 23 Mogaung, 108
in hydrothermal veins, 37 Lightning Ridge, New South jadeite in, 85
idealized process for formation, Wales, 26-27 occurrence of, 105-106
20 mining techniques, 32 rubies from, 73
Amphibole mineral group, 101 Mintabie, South Australia, 31 Byon,95
Andamooka, South Australia, 31- noodling, 32
32 opal occurrences, 25 Cat's-eye chrysoberyl, 11
Andamooka Opal, 32 opal production figures, 32 Maharani cat's-eye chrysoberyl,
Aquamarine, 3,5,57,59-60, 62 Queensland, 31-32 15
Aquamarine crystals, 58, 66 White Cliffs, New South Wales, 25 Chanthaburi-Trat Gem Field,
Argyle, Western Australia, 131-138 Thailand,73-75
access, 133 Bang Kha Cha, 76 access, 75
characteristics of Argyle Basanites, 76 geologic sketchmap of ruby and
diamonds, 136-138 Basanitoids, 76 sapphire mines, 74
diamond-recovery plant adjacent Batholiths, 39 geology, 75-76
to Argyle mine, 135 Benitoite, 37, 41 history, 75
geologic map and cross section Beryl, 7, 57 location, 75
of,133 aquamarine, 57, 59-60 mining methods, 76-77
geology, 134-136 emerald, 6, 39 ruby from, 73-75
location, 133 morganite, 57, 59-60 washing of gem gravels at, 78
open-pit Argyle mine, 135 red bery!, 72 Chhatrapati Manick, 97-98
overview of, 131 Black opal, 23 Chivor district, Almeida, Boyaca,
pink diamonds of, 132, 137-138 from Lightning Ridge, New South Colombia, 42, 44-45
placer deposits associated with, Wales, 26-27, 32 emeralds from, 45
131-133 Black Prince's "ruby," 14 geology, 48-50
significance of, 131-133 Black star sapphires, 76 location, 42
Australia, history and production Blueschist metamorphism, 85 map of mines in, 42
of diamonds in, 134 Blueschists, 102 view looking east over, 44
141
142 Index
Chrysoberyls, 3, 5, 57, 60 kimberlite as source of, 117 Halls Creek Mobile Zone, 134, 136
see also Cat's eye Chrysoberyl) in placer deposits, 6 Harding pegmatite, 58
from Sri Lanka, 7 quality of, 6 Hematite, 41
Colombian emerald deposits, 41- Diamond pipes, 117, 119 Highland series, 8-9
54 diagram showing idealization of, High-pressure regional
Isee also Chivor district, Almeida, 130 metamorphism
Boyaca, Colombia) Dolomite, 49 (see also Tawmaw, Burma)
Chivor district, 42 diagram of, 103
Custodia de San Ignacio or "La East African gem belt, 89 process of, 101-102
Lechuga," 53-54 ECOMINAS world distribution, 2, 103-106
Guaqueros,47 Isee Empresa Colombiana de Hixon ruby, 98
history, 42-45 Minas) Hmyadwin (Hmyaw), 96
Hooker emerald, 50, 52 Eluvial beds, 10 Hooker emerald, 50, 52
important Colombian emeralds, Emeralds, 6 Hydrothermal fluids, 37
50-54 (see also Muzo district, Boyaca, Hydrothermal gemstone deposits,
map of mines in Chivor district, Colombia) 37
42 crystals, 52 factors in, 40
map of mines in Muzo district, Devonshire emerald, 52 fissure veins, 40
41 Emilia emerald crystal, 53 formation of, 39-40
Patricia emerald, 52 Gachala emerald, 45 world distribution, 2, 41-44, 48-
Pizarro, 42 Hooker emerald, 50, 52 50
Quesada, Pedro F. de, 44 in hydrothermal veins, 37
recent history and production, illicit mining of, 45 lherzolite nodules, 76
45-48 from low-pressure regional Iherzolites, 124
Spanish Inquisition emerald, 50 metamorphism, 88 (see also Peridotites)
Complexo Fundamental, 61-62 Mogul emerald, 51 Illam, 7, 10-12
Complex pegmatites, 58 Patricia emerald, 50, 52 Imperial jade, 103
Concrete band conglomerate, 31 Spanish Inquisition necklace, 50 Imperial topaz, 41
Contact metamorphic gem world occurrences, 41, 48-53 India, emeralds in, 50
deposits, 87 Emilia emerald crystal, 53 Inselbergs, 61
Coober Pedy, South Australia, 23, Empresa Colombiana de Minas, Itacolomy series, 61
28-30,32 45 Itatiaia (Jonas) mine, 65
drilling rigs, 30 Enclase,41
gibbers, 28 Exometamorphism, 88 Jade,3,5,6,101
naming of, 28 (see also Tawmaw, Burma)
opalized clam shells from, 29 Feldspar, 40 Imperial jade, 103
opal occurrence at, 25 Finch Claystone, 26 nephrite, 89, 101, 103-104
overview from east of opal Flood basalts, 72 new jade, 103
deposit at, 28 Forsterite olivine, 37, 117 Jadeite, 101-102
tunneling machine, 30 (see also Tawmaw, Burmal
Coocoran Claystone, 26 Gachala emerald, 45 in Burma, 85, 105-106
Cornflower blue sapphires, 73 Garimpeiros, 61, 66 examples of, 109-112
Corundum, 10 Garnets, 7 generalized cross-section of, 105
formation, 119 Gem-bearing placer gravels, types important collections, 108-110
formed by low-pressure regional of,10 occurrences of, 102
metamorphism, 89 Gem deposits in Burma, 105-106
in Thailand, 74-75 (see also World distribution of gem thin section showing
Corundum-bearing pegmatites, 57 deposits) interlocking granular
Custodia de San Ignacio or "La in Sri Lanka, 8 crystals, 102
Lechuga," 53-54 water in formation of, 3, 5 Jadeite-albite dikes in Burma, 105
Gem gravels, hand-digging for, 13
d'Amato, Pierre, 91 Gibbers, 28 Kabaing granite, 94
Devonshire emerald, 52 Glaucophane schists, 102 Kanase, 96-97
Diamonds, 3, 5, 117 Golconda district mine, 62, 64 Khao Ploi Waen, 76
characteristics of Argyle Gold,3 KhaoWao,76
diamonds, 137-138 Granitic pegmatites, 57-58 Khondalite,8
formation, 117, 129 Graphic granite, 57 Kimberlite, 129-131
geographical location of, 6 Great Artesian Basin, 31 definition, 129
history and production of, in Groundwater, 20 emplacement theories, 130
Australia, 134 Guaqueros,47 forms of, 130-131
Index 143
as source of diamonds, 117 kanase, 96-97 Pegmatites, 6, 9, 57-68

world distribution, 2, 129, 131, location, 91-92 (see also Minas Gerais, Brazil)
133 mining methods, 95-96 classes of, according to depth of
Kunzite, 57, 59-60 Mogok gneiss, 93-94 formation, 58
production, 92-93 classification of types, 58
Lamproite, 133 recovery and washing plant for dating, 61
Lapis lazuli, 88 gem gravels, 96 discovery of, 60
Lebin,95 view of town of, 91 formation of, 37
Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Mogul emerald, 51 geologic occurrence, 37
26-27 Molten lava, gems from, 71 importance of, 57
Logan sapphire, 15 (see also Chanthaburi-Trat, mineralogy of, 66
Loodwins (Loos), 96 Thailand) noteworthy Brazilian pegmatite
Low-pressure (high-temperature) Moonstone, 7, 37, 71 gems, 66-68
regional metamorphism, 85, from Sri Lanka, 71 origin of, 58-59
87-89 from United States, 71 as term, 57
(see also Mogok, Burma) Morganite, 57, 59-60 world distribution, 2, 58-62, 64
diagram showing process of, 88 Muscovite mica, 57 Peridot Hill, Zabargad Island,
emeralds from, 88-89 Muscovite quartz, 41 Egypt,121-122,124
world distribution, 2, 88-89, 91- Muzo district, Boyaca, Colombia, Peridot Mesa, 72
92, 94 41-54 Peridots, 7, 117
calcite veins in carbonaceous formation, 119
Maharani cat's-eye chrysoberyl, 15 shale, 49 geologic occurrence, 37
Malachite, 3, 19 geology of, 48-50 important peridots, 124-126
idealized formation process for, important emerald, from, 42-43, in Mogok, Burma, 89
20 45,50-54 occurrences on Zabargad Island,
Mamoti,13 location, 41 124
Mantle thrust sheet, diagram map of mines in, 41 world distribution, 2, 89, 123-124
showing emplacement of, view looking to north, 45 from Zabargad, 117
120 view of current mining activity at, Peridotites, 105
Mantle thrust sheet gem deposits, 48 in Mogok, Burma, 94
117,119-126 on Zabargad Island, 124
(see Zabargad Island, Egypt) Nephrite, 89, 101, 103-104 Pipes
Metamorphism, 85 (see also jade) (see Diamond pipes)
Mica schists, 88-89 thin section showing inteIWoven Placer deposits, 3
Minas Gerais, Brazil, 59-68 fibrous crystals, 102 formation of, 3
(see also Pegmatites) world distribution, 2, 103-104 quality of, 6
aquamarine crystal from, 66 New jade, 103 world distribution, 2, 6
Cruzeiro mine, 62 Noble metals, 3 Placer diamond deposits, 6
tourmaline specimen from, 63 Noodling, 32 Argyle, 131-138
gem pegmatite mines of, 59 Noolinga Neera, 32 Placer minerals, 6
geology of pegmatite belt in, 61- Placer gemstones, 6
65 Olivine, 72 Plagioclase lherzolite, 124
important gemstones from, 60, (see also Peridots) Platinum, 3
62-68 Olympic Australis, 32 Pleonaste, 73
indicolite tourmaline from, 67 Opals, 3, 23-33 Polo, Marco, 8
kunzite crystal from, 67 Isee also Australian opal Potassium-feldspar, 57
mining techniques at, 66 deposits) Precambrian rocks, on Sri Lanka, 8
tourmaline from, 68 arrangement of silica spheres, 22 Primary deposits, gems in, 6
village of Cruzeiro, 62 black opal, 23 Pyrite, 49
Mintabie, South Australia, 31 description, 21-23 Pyroxenes, 101
Mintabie opal deposit, 23 formation, 21 Pyrrhotite, 77
Mogok, Burma, 85, 87-98 geologic occurrences, 23-24
access, 91-92 world distribution, 2, 23-26, 28- Quartz, 40, 49, 57
detailed geologic map of Mogok 32 in albite, 102
Stone Tract, 94 Orthoclase, 71 muscovite quartz, 41
examples of rubies from, 90 Queensland opal occurrences, 31-
famous rubies from, 97-98 Parent rocks, gems in, 6 32
geology, 93-95 Parisite, 49
history, 89-93 Patricia emerald, 52 Rainwater, 19
Kabaing granite, 94 Peace ruby, 97-98 Red Sea, 120
144 Index
Rhodochrosite, 3, 19-20 geology of, 8-10 indicolite tourmaline from Minas

Rifting, 119 history, 8 Gerais, 67
Roosevelt, President Franklin D., 67 Illam, 7, 10-12 from Minas Gerais, 68
"Rose of Itatiaia," 65 mamoti,13 world distribution, 2, 62
Rosser Reeves star ruby, 14-15 mining techniques, 10-13 Turquoise, 3, 20
Rubellite, 58 moonstone from, 71 Twinlon, 95-96
Rubies, 3, 5, 37, 72-73 Precambrian rocks, 8
Isee also Mogok, Burma) Rosser Reeves star ruby from, 14 Uru boulder conglomerate, 105-106
from alkali basalts, 38 sapphires from, 7
from basaltic volcanic eruptions, watti, 10-13 Vijayan series, 8
119 Steel band, 26 Virgem da Lapa pegmatite district,
from Burma, 73 Streams 62
Chhatrapati Manick, 97-98 alluvial deposits in, 6 blue topaz crystal from, 64
Hixon ruby, 98 riffles, 5-6
important rubies, 14-15, 73, 97- Surface mining, 13 Wallangulla Sandstone, 26
98 Surface water, 19 Water
magmatic occurrence of, 72 in dissolution of minerals, 3
Peace ruby, 97-98 Tawmaw, Burma, 85, 101-112 in formation of gem deposits, 3, 5
Rosser Reeves star ruby, 14-15 access, 103 velocity streams, 5
from Thailand, 73-75 detailed geologic map of Watti,10-13
world distribution, 2,72-75 Tawmaw Jade Mines, 104 Weathering, 3, 5, 23
general geology, 104-105 White Cliffs opal field, 23
Sapphires, 3, 5-6, 11, 37, 72-73, 76 history, 103-104 World distribution of gem deposits
from alkali basalts, 38 important jade from, 85, 109- formed by great heat and
black star sapphires, 76 112 pressure, 84
color of, 7 location, 103 formed by surface waters, 2
crystals of blue sapphires, 16 mining methods, 107-108 from great depths, 116
geology of, 76 occurrence of jadeite in, 105 of igneous-hydrothermal origin,
Logan sapphire, 15 overview of alluvial mining near, 36
in Mogok, Burma, 89 107
pink Yogo sapphires, 73 Tertiaries, 106 Zabargad Island, Egypt, 117, 119-
from Sri Lanka, 7 Thailand 126
in Thailand, 73-74 rubies from, characteristics of, access, 120
world distribution, 2, 6, 36-37 77-81 faceted peridot from, 120
Sanidine,71 sapphires from, 73-74 geologic map of, 123
Secondary placer deposits, 5 characteristics of, 77-81 geology, 123-124
Siam Mining Act, 75 Thrust sheets history, 120-123
Silica, 23-24 Isee Mantle thrust sheet gem important peridots from, 124-
Silica spheres, arrangement of, 24 deposits) 126
Spanish Inquisition necklace, 43 Timur "ruby," 14 location, 120
Spinel Iherzolites, 124 Topaz, 3,5,57,59-60 main gem pits near bottom of
Spinels, 3, 5, 7, 11, 76 geologic occurrence, 37 Peridot Hill, 121
Black Prince's "ruby," 14 from hydrothermal veins, 41 peridot occurrence, 124
colors of, 7 Imperial topaz, 41 peridot waste dumps on Peridot
Timur "ruby," 14 in lithophysal cavities in rhyolite, Hill,122
Sri Lanka, 7-16 71-72 ruins of mining camp on, 122
chrysoberyl from, 7 topaz enclase, 41 view of Peridot Hill, 121
famous gems from, 14-16 world distribution, 2, 57, 59-60 Zircons, 7, 37, 72, 73
gem deposits in, 8 Tourmaline crystal, 65 from alkali basalts, 38
gem gravels in, 10, 13 Tourmalines, 3, 5, 7, 57, 59, 62 placer deposits of, 7
gemstone occurrences, 10 from Cruzeiro mine, 63 Zoned pegmatites, 58

Gemstones And: Origins

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Gemstones and

Featuring Photographs by Harold and Erica Van Pelt

~ VAN NOSTRAND REINHOLD

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 89-16438

All rights reseIVed. No part of this work covered by

Van Nostrand Reinhold

Van Nostrand Reinhold International Company Limited

Van Nostrand Reinhold

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Keller, Peter C., 1947-

ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-6676-8 e-ISBN-13: 978-1-4684-6674-4

1. Precious stones. I. Title.

PART I Gemstones Deposited by Water on the Earth's Surface 1

1. Gemstones Concentrated by Surface Waters: 5

PART II Gemstones of Igneous-Hydrothermal Origin 35

3. Hydrothermal Gem Deposits: 39

PART III Gemstones Formed by Very High Temperatures and Pressures 83

6. Gemstones Formed by Low-Pressure Regional Metamorphism: 87

PART IV Gemstones Formed at Great Depths 115

8. Mantle Thrust Sheet Gem Deposits: 119

Each gem deposit-whether of primary origin in the parent rocks; or secondary

A few years ago, I was approached by a gentleman who surprised me by stating

The first chapter examines deposits of gemstones in which the previously

Chapter 1. Gemstones Concentrated by Surface

Chapter 2. Gemstones Formed from Surface Water:

Map 1. World distribution of important gem deposits formed by surface waters.

streambed eliminates flawed or weaker areas of the

THE GEM GRAVELS OF SRI LANKA

The most prolific and diverse of all placer deposits

Figure 1-2. Sri Lanka is best known for its sapphires.

Figure 1-5. Geologic sketchmap of Sri Lanka,

Figure 1-6. View down a

Figure 1-7. In Sri Lanka,

Famous Gems from Sri Lanka

Figure 2-3. Diagram

Figure 2-4. Photomicrograph of precious opal showing orderly arrangement of silica

Figure 2-5. Photomicrograph of common opal showing disordered arrangement of silica

AUSTRALIAN OPAL DEPOSITS

Opal Occurrences 1901). The most spectacular opal replacement

Diagrammatic section showing

Lightning Ridge , New South Wales

Figure 2-8. The striking play

Chapter 3. Hydrothermal Gem Deposits: The

Chapter 4. Gemstones Formed in Pegmatites:

Chapter 5. Gemstones Formed Directly from Molten

GRANT CO~ NEW MEXtCO

JACOBINA. BAM' .... E!lR"-Z11.

Map 2. World distribution of important gem deposits of igneous-hydrothermal origin.

and transporting minerals, openings in the sur-

:=:::::. Road or trail

Figure 3-3. Index:. map showing location of

tains to the plains of the Orinoco. Restrepo's search

Figure 3-8. Guaqueros at Muzo. Photo by Peter C. Keller.

REFERENCES Klein, I. 1941. Smaragde unter dem Urwald. Oswald Ar-

erside Counties of California (Jahns and Wright,

The world's most important gemstone-producing

crystallize as quartz, feldspar, rare minerals, and

Figure 4-3. The pegmatites

capital of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, is a major

36 ~ 3. (~g~Cd:r:~~n'lerate 9. G8bbro 36 Figure 8-7, Geologic map of